


QR Code: Want

by Lupo (LupoLight)



Series: Androids and Idiots [3]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Elijah Kamski & Gavin Reed are Siblings, Forced Tattoo, Gavin Reed Redemption, Gavin is best at undercover, Gavin's cat is Furball, Gay Disaster Gavin Reed, More tags to be added, Multi, Post-Canon, chloe is a memelord, eli's house is full of chloe's, so many music references
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-23
Updated: 2020-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:07:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 43,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21913432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LupoLight/pseuds/Lupo
Summary: It's two months since androids got their freedom, and Gavin's dodged the DPD as if he owed it money, going undercover for a month. It's produced results, and now sporting a new tattoo that's causing new problems, he has to deal with a new partner, a DPD that's changing, and his own appearance created in his absence.That'd be easy if he wasn't a human with emotions too.=====================Post-Good Ending Reed900, with 'military issue' RK900, sassy Connor, and the disaster king of emotions: Gavin Reed. Also featuring the Kamski household.
Relationships: Original Chloe | RT600/Elijah Kamski, Tina Chen/ST200 "Chloe" Android(s), Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Series: Androids and Idiots [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1423816
Comments: 77
Kudos: 198





	1. Transfer

**Author's Note:**

  * For [The Jericho and Cyberlife servers](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=The+Jericho+and+Cyberlife+servers).



> BIG shoutout to my Beta-Reader for this fanfic: sunkiller! They answered my shout out on tumblr. They're new to beta-reading, so if anyone sees any mistakes, please don't be afraid to comment. I do re-read over each chapter to make sure it's alright, but- eyyy. Doing our best. 
> 
> Otherwise, I hope you all enjoy this one! I will be updating both my fanfics as soon as my beta readers finish chapters(once a day), and now I got another one to start! Have fun everyone!

“ _ PHCK! _ ” The loud curse echoed through the building, as grey eyes glared into unnaturally neon pink ones. The girl had the balls to laugh at his pain, peeling off the paper pressed onto his neck.

“Oh don’t be such a baby, fleshie.” Her voice was high pitched, Gavin immediately thinking ‘ _ e-thot _ ’ every time she spoke, and she pulled up a mirror, letting him see the marking. A blue box, with boxes cut out of it like random missing pixels. A QR code is what it instantly reminded Gavin of.

A month ago, Gavin would’ve laughed at the idea of QR codes ending up on humans. A month ago the wonder duo of the office came back after escorting robo-Jesus around for weeks. But right now wasn’t a month ago. While Connor and Hank were tasked with the rising amount of android-related crimes, Gavin had the most recent string of bodies on his desk. Fowler was concerned this was turning out to be a serial killer. But with the last body he got before going undercover, they had evidence of something off taking place.

The guy was a camera hog, and had taken pictures of his day to day life. He had an active, but small, instagram following, and the last posts they went through left enough for Gavin to work with. The guy went to a club with some friends he made at a party the week before, androids if Gavin were to guess, and didn’t leave it. The last photo was of him, another guy, and this marking on his neck. The marking wasn’t on the body when they found it, and Gavin figured it was what got him killed. He didn’t look good in the photo either, eyes off to the side, and the guy he was with was holding the phone, and him, closely.

Too bad when they found the guy he was with, he was in a Cyberlife emergency repair room. Basically an ER room, for androids. It kept Cyberlife in business while they tried to recover their public opinion after everything, from what Gavin could tell. Gavin had to have Connor’s help with this one, and they basically discovered something had entered into his coding somehow. It was labeled a virus, but no one knew how it got into the guy, and with it affecting all his systems then archiving any trace of it, they couldn’t put anything on him either. Or whoever did this to him. He confessed to following the guy on instagram, but that was the only way he knew him. At least he vaguely was able to speak around when he lost control- when saw the victim. It gave Gavin an idea.

Why not head to the club too? The club’s whole theme was ‘android catered’, made by androids for androids. It sprung up in the ruins of another club, similar to Eden, when the owner left Detroit; one of it’s previous workers bought it. It was a nice place, if you ignored the amount of shady deals happening in the booths, androids and humans alike getting into shit. Gavin didn’t even know if there was a drug that affected thirium and coding, but he didn’t doubt it. Humans were fucked up, if there was a new market to sell to, they’d find a way. For once, he hoped more androids would decide that being a cop was a fun line of work, because this post-revolution Detroit was going to be a shit show. But that was a future him problem, current him was in a red tanktop with tight black jeans sporting a tear in the left side- dressed like he would if he was going to one of his usual clubs,  _ and _ was bound to a chair.

The girl android snapped her fingers, and Gavin jolted out of his thoughts, finding the burn subsided into a tingle. It was applied like a temporary tattoo, though when the girl licked it, the thirium in it reacted and caused it to glow. Two more androids stepped up, dragging him up. His wrists were bound, and with a gun on the girl and the help, he wasn’t going to fight. “Alright, take him into the club.”

“What the fuck is all this,” he questioned, knowing he had a wire on him. At least that was one good thing of all this. They could make wires not even androids could detect now, with officers verifying them.

“Simply an experiment. Call it- a study on human and android relations.” Her voice was smug and Gavin growled at it, tugging at the arms holding him down. He got jerked around for his efforts, and the two people holding him started to force him forwards. The girl walked ahead of all them, and grinned. “Don’t worry though, shouldn’t affect you tonight. You came in alone, didn’t you?” They kept going, walking out of the room Gavin had been dragged into. He did, in fact, come alone, not thinking much of it. Did the other victims walk in with someone? All he remembered was walking into the club, noticing the crowd had a lot of LEDs in it, and then dancing with this girl after she approached him.

‘ _ She pricked you with her fingernail, _ ’ he reminded himself, and then everything had went blurry. He woke up bound in a chair, and cue the stick-on brand. He was lead back to the club, in through the side door, til they got into a storage room of sorts. “Alright, I’m bailing. You two know the drill.” Gavin watched as the girl got a helmet off the shelves, and he commented on it.

“Cute helmet for a psycho bitch.” Hopefully this would get the other’s working with him to keep an eye out for her.

“Thanks, I’d say I’d lend you it, but I rather like it _clean_.” And with that she left. The helpers untied his hands, and Gavin felt the press of metal on his back.

“Get moving, out into the club.”

Gavin grunted, nodding his understanding as he rubbed his wrists. They kept close to him til he walked out into the front room of the club.The guns went away, one of the two helping androids staying by the door and the other heading to the front. Gavin glared, attempting to stay where he was. The guy refused to look at him. “So now what.”

“Please go enjoy yourself sir.”

“Uh huh, and what if I tell someone about this?”

“Please go enjoy yourself sir.”

“Are you going to explain anything fucker?”

“ _ Please _ go enjoy yourself, sir.”

Picking up the hint he wasn’t saying shit, Gavin waved his hand at him, walking out into the club. Safely in the noise of the club, he spoke to himself, just loud enough for the mic to pick it up. “Not drugged, got the mark, girl had a motorcycle helmet, pink eyes, and blonde hair. The security staff are in on this.” He didn’t get a response, earbuds being too obvious of a give away, and just kept moving towards the bar.

He settled back down at the bar, getting the bartenders attention. Briefly, the eyes flicked to his new mark, and Gavin could see the way he sagged. “What would you like?” Gavin shrugged, a ‘surprise me’ leaving him. He left and came back quickly, sitting something light in front of Gavin. Gavin turned to the crowd then, sipping it. He seen eyes on him yet, the security making sure he didn’t just leave. He tried to think of the conversation with the guy in the ER, but all he could offer was ‘he saw the victim’. Maybe it was only when he left with someone that they acted?  
  
At least while he waited, he saw a couple drug deals go down, humans hiding off in corners while no one else cared. It would be enough to bust this place, and he called it out to his mic. A couple hours passed by, and finally the place _really_ turned lively. Officers came in the front door, and Gavin watched as one of them held a piece of paper in front of the security’s face, turning him around to handcuff him. Getting up, he stretched, looking to the back. He blinked as the guy in the back suddenly disappeared, and then frowned. Walking over to where the other security guy was being handcuffed, he watched as the officer detaining him suddenly stalled seeing Gavin. His impassive face suddenly turned _pissed_ , and Gavin had to recall if he ever pissed this one off to begin with- to garner such a strong reaction. “Yes, _sir_?” Even his voice suddenly sounded hostile, and Gavin held up his hands. 

“There was another one, same like this guy, in the back, that was working with the lady,” the detained security scowled at him as he spoke, but he continued. “Was hoping to see if this guy would do the right thing and let me know where he’s running off to, or if we’re going to put out a search on him.” The officer scoffed, pulling the guy away from the wall to face him.

“Sorry, don’t know,” and the fucker  _ shrugged _ at him, before he was being pulled away. This case was starting to give him a headache. “Fucking andro-”

“Gavin!” He turned, just in time to be tackled by Tina, hands thrown around his neck. “Why didn’t you tell me you were heading here! I had to hear from fucking Chris about all this!” Gavin laughed at the indignant ‘hey’ he heard from the side somewhere, and pushed the girl off of him.

“I didn’t tell you because you would’ve yelled at me for it. So, brief me, did you guys get the chick?”

Tina went over what she knew, which wasn’t much. Apparently, the minute she said ‘human-android’ relations, Connor and Hank were assigned the case too. “And a new guy! He’s fucking  _ terrifying _ Gav, you got to see this shit.” Tina pulled out her phone, showing him a photo. Standing there beside Connor, hands clasped behind his back, white Cyberlife shirt with a high black collar, was a  _ mountain  _ of a fucker. He had a similar hairstyle, but his face was a lot more stern than Connor’s, and he was a lot stronger looking too. 

“Great, so now there’s two robocops.”

“Robo-detectives, Reed. And I guess? He showed up last week sometime, which you’d know, if you hadn’t been undercover for a whole month! Who was even taking care of your cat.”

Gavin huffed, crossing his arms. “My neighbor duh. And Tina, if I told you every time I went undercover, then what would the point be. I’m fine quit fucking worrying.” He turned to see the majority of the place cleared out. “Come on, I need to go and look over the evidence and tapes from when you guys got the-”

“What the fuck is this?” Tina flicked the QR code on his neck and Gavin flinched, the resulting tingle making his skin crawl.

“I have no idea yet. It’s the mark we seen on the last vic’, but what it stands for I have no clue.” Tina hummed at that, and her thumb ran over it. “Quit phcking touching it,” he hissed out, swatting at her hand.

“What, does it still hurt or something?”

“It feels weird. I think there is a chemical mixture in it, I’m going to need to have Connor to scan it or some shit.”

There was a brief silence before Tina grinned, and Gavin turned to start walking around. “Kinky,” she called out, not failing to have the tips of his ears turning dark in embarrassment. He went out to his car, informing the mic was turning off, and started towards the station. Getting there, he was briefly confused. As he walked past a couple of officers, he noticed the sudden hostility, one of them having an LED in and it going red as he went by. ‘ _ What the fuck happened while I was gone? _ ’ Gavin blinked, then remembered the mark on his neck. It seemed far fetched, but maybe it was the cause. He quickly rushed back to his car, looking through his trunk and pulling out a hoodie. It wasn’t a scarf, but if he positioned the hood, maybe it could cover it. Then making sure he had his badge and wallet, he went back in.

When he walked by again, they looked over at him, but he could see the confusion on their faces as well as he could feel it for himself. ‘ _ Something’s up with the brand, but why is it only working now? _ ’ Gavin huffed, sliding into the building and signing in, thankfully nothing else happening. He made it to Fowler’s office, glad the boss man was still in. With the big case he wasn’t too surprised. “Ah there you are, took you long enough.” Gavin felt an eye twitch, a sneer coming to his face.

“There was fucking traffic, sue me. Anyways, Chen told me Connor and Hank got my suspect?”

The captain only seemed amused by his irritation, and nodded towards the interrogation rooms. “Yeah, seems like you got a case out of your normal workload Reed. Connor’s offering to take it off you-”

“I bet he fucking is! He didn’t a month of work in undercover, that fucker can sit on the sidelines, this is  _ my _ bust.” Gavin growled out the last bit, crossing his arms, the mark exposing itself just enough.

“Relax Reed, I told him just as well. Him and Anderson have their own shit to worry about, which is why you have a partner. Go introduce yourself, he’s hanging out with the others near the room.” 

‘ _ Don’t tell me I got partnered with the fucking new guy _ ,’ he thought sourly, and his face must’ve shown it. “And Reed- if I hear  _ any _ objections about this partner, you’ll be doing desk work for a month. Understand me?”

“Under-fucking-stood,” and he rolled his eyes, arms falling to his sides.

“Good. While you’re with them, get that shit on your neck checked out. We still don’t know why it’s there, and it could cause an incident.”

“Like I don’t know that myself, can I be excused now.”

The captain waved him off, disappearing back into his office and a door closing on Gavin’s face. Gavin hissed at it out of habit, just resisting flipping it off as he walked away, fixing his hoodie. Walking down to the room, he groaned as his fears were confirmed. It was just Anderson, Connor, and the new one. Up close, he could see the ‘ _ RK900 _ ’ standing out against a black panel, bright blue triangle beside it, matching the LED. Up close, he could see the hard set jaw, nearly fucking chiseled out of the man’s face, and clear blue eyes examining him. Part of him felt like he should’ve fully changed, but he disregarded that part. “Glad to see the wonder duo again… Not.” Gavin called out instead, raising an eyebrow as they turned to him.

“Glad the feeling’s mutual you rabid bastard. What the hell did you get into for a month?” Part of Gavin was actually thankful to Connor. Hank went from being a five star officer, to a miserable waste of a man during the time he worked here. Now, he wasn’t quite the glitz and glory Gavin remembered, but the harsh words and taunts were a lot better than booze stains and piles of paperwork. Then there was another part annoyed with it all, because all the good also meant he had to actually work with this new Hank.

“Some shit, so what’s the deets on this bitch?” Connor huffed, and Gavin couldn’t help the surprise at the way he looked so affronted by Gavin’s cursing. ‘ _ He’s gotten better at emoting properly. Fucker… Good for him _ .’

“Detective Reed! That’s inappropriate to call anyone, even suspects. The  _ details _ that you are inquiring about however, are few. I’m afraid without a new warrant, I can no longer force probe on her, so we need to wait. I was able to analyse the fluids in her mouth,” Gavin knew he made a face at that, and Hank growled at him for it.

“Reed-”

“Please don’t tell me you kissed her, I don’t need that image.”

Connor groaned, eyes rolling, and Hank mimic’d the groan too. “No, I did not kiss her. She was swabbed when I noticed it wasn’t thirium based, and I analysed the que-tips.” Gavin ‘bleghed’ at that, turning his face for extra emphasis.

“So you licked the que-tips!”

“Yes, you know this is how my sensors work.”

“ _ That’s worse. _ ”

“Can you please act mature- As I was saying, her saliva is made from a chemical base. It reacts interestingly with thirium-.”

Gavin cut him off again, straightening up and making sure his neck was covered. “Spare me the science-y shit. Say it’s both applied to skin, what would it do? Or if both are licked by another android.” Connor blinked, looking to the way his neck was covered.

“Detective Reed, you’re hiding something. Do you have the mark Mr. Oxentis had before he died?” Gavin huffed, wanting to say _'obviously',_ but instead just nodding and rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, and until I know  _ why _ I don’t want to be exposing it. So what’s going on with the chemical shit.”

“Well, nothing should happen to an android if they lick it, however, when applied to the skin with thirium, it would essentially chemically sear the skin blue. It’s known for applying tattoos onto androids, since traditional ink ones don’t take very well yet.”

Gavin went silent, glaring at them, and then the new guy finally spoke. “So yes, in simple terms, she gave you a tattoo.” Gavin jumped, having forgotten about him for a moment. His voice was a  _ fuckton _ different from Connor’s. Deeper, stern, less expressive, yet somehow consistently  _ indifferent _ sounding, like he could give a fuck about nothing. Gavin glared a bit extra at him, huffing again in response.

“Great, wonderful, fan-fucking-tastic,” Gavin bit out, turning back to Connor. “Is there any way to get rid of it?”

“Short from cutting out the skin, or applying another one on top, I’m afraid not. There is progress working on reversing it, because of forced tattoos on those owned by gang members prior to the revolution, but not enough yet to assist with your issue. And they haven't been applied to human's frequently enough either.”

“You could also die,” the 900 clipped in, and Gavin took a step away from him.  
“RK900! Rude! I mean, he’s _right_. When you die, this marking fades off, explaining why we couldn’t find it on the previous bodies. It’s not meant for human skin.”

Gavin groaned, before Hank clapped his hands. “Well if it’s not a problem right now, let’s focus on what is. She did tell Connor about it being a scientific experiment basically, but besides that she didn’t reveal much. All she’d say is ‘he’ll find out’, so we gotta figure out what to do with you now that you got a mark that may or may not have gotten five people killed.” Gavin looked to him, then shrugged.

“So far, it’s only been a problem when people look at it.” The RK900 cut in, LED yellow as he did.

“People?” A silence seemed to blanket the group, and Gavin remembered with a sharp pain in his chest. The last time Connor spoke to him was before the revolution, before Gavin was sure this fucker had feelings and wasn’t just a machine with a task to be them but better. Before Gavin cared about him, to be absolutely honest. Not that he cared much now, but he wasn’t like before, and Connor wasn’t there to realize that. ‘ _He probably told the other tincans everything too._ ’  
“Yeah fuckers,” he said defensively, because there sure as fuck was not the time to go over all that. It was better that everyone assumed he hated everyone, it would make disappearing easier. Maybe his partner would even want reassigned. “Like the officer arresting the one security guy that had me tied up. We were talking fine this morning, but when I approached him after, he suddenly became pissed. Happened with two guys out front too, the one still had his mood-light. Went red, thought they were gonna fucking fight me for something. But I got a hoodie and covered this shit up, and everything chilled.”

Connor hummed, a purely aesthetic decision Gavin knew, but he let it slide. “We’ll have to run some tests on it then, but if it’s not urgent, perhaps you could just wear something to keep it covered then?”  
“That’s what I was figuring I’d do anyways, but thanks for the approval,” Gavin snarked back, before looking to the door. “She really won’t open up?”

“Nope. But we should have a warrant within the week. I couldn’t even get her stress levels to raise enough to excuse an integration for the sake of calming her down.” Gavin sighed, before looking to his partner. He was simply watching them, and Gavin felt a chill at how much damn taller he was.

“So what now? I have a partner for what fucking reason exactly?”

“To try and dig up leads on connections. Now that we know what the mark looks like, and how they got it, try to find out who else was involved.”

Gavin supposed that was a good idea, though it didn’t take a genius to know it was a needle-in-haystack search. “Cool, when do you wanna experiment on this?” He tapped the side of his neck, and Connor sighed.

“I’ll see if I can get a friend that doesn’t know you to help out Wednesday.” Gavin nodded, before turning to his new partner.

“Well then, let’s get going, you can handle cameras and I’ll look through phone records. I know the officers aren’t the first fuckers to see this considering I was wearing bare minimal at the club, so I’m going to run whomever you find against common contacts.”

“Seems like an optimal use of your time, detective.” Gavin stalled this time, watching the other talk. ‘ _ Holy phck, he has… Really sharp teeth. _ ’ They looked like they could tear through metal, and  _ phck _ , that was cool. He wondered if the other smiled, would they fit in perfectly? Or would there be overlap?

“Yeah…” Gavin pulled himself out of his thoughts, instead pulling up the hood further, before walking away. “Call me when you get something dipshit duo!” Hank huffed, and muttered a ‘fuck you Reed’ as he walked away. Gavin got back to his desk, falling into his seat, before remembering that coffee was easily a thing he could get. He went to get back up, and felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking at its owner, he scowled. “The fuck tincan?”

The RK900 raised an eyebrow, then looked to the display for their computers. “Where are you going already?” ‘ _ Oh great _ ,’ Gavin internally groaned, swatting the other’s hand off. Despite it moving, it still felt like Gavin hit a fucking  _ pole _ .

“Grabbing a coffee. If you haven’t realized, it’s nighttime dipshit. If I’m going to deal with this bullshit right now, I want caffeine. Now, unless you want to waste both of our precious time, phck right on off.” Gavin got up, glaring up to the taller man. He was a lot more built than Connor too, and his head, with nothing in it to keep his focus, couldn’t help but be curious. ‘ _ Connor was too soft so his next model is terminator, seems about right. The new guys at Cyberlife are a bunch of dumbasses _ .’

He was a bit terrifying though, so props for that. Gavin’s staring match ended as the man moved back, heading to his desk. “Very well. I suppose it’s only  _ polite _ to not disturb your routine, detective.” The way he said that, his tone indifferent yet-  _ smug _ somehow… It irritated Gavin, but was a bit relieving. At least it wasn’t Connor’s kiss-assery. That just pissed him off. He went to get his coffee, noticing Tina standing in the back.

“Sup bitch,” he started, pressing the button as she whipped around. The officer across from her blinked, looking between the two.

“Sup asshole! So you meet your new partner yet~” Gavin watched her move over to him, waving to the poor guy who stood confused.

“Yeah, what  _ joy _ ... Phck, I did not want to deal with this shit as soon as I got back.”

“I bet not. But he’s something isn’t he?” Gavin raised an eyebrow to her tone, something in it lilted and teasing.

“Yeah I guess? Got some teeth on him that’s for sure. I half expected him to be more like Hank’s shadow than- that.” He waved his hand lazily, picking up his coffee when it dinged.

“Uh huh, so you’re not scared of him?”

“Phck no, I’m not afraid of anything. You’re just a pussy Tina.”

“Says the man who can’t watch  _ Annabelle _ with me.”

Gavin frowned, flipping her off with the hand holding the coffee and walking towards the door. “Low move Chen, low move. Phck you and your-” He bumped into somebody, the coffee splashing his hand and causing him to hiss. Looking up, he growled as he saw the white Cyberlife jacket. “What the fuck tincan!”

“You were taking longer than necessary detective, and while you might enjoy wasting time, I do not.”

Gavin growled, and started to bunch up when Tina placed a hand on his shoulder. “Eyyy chill out feral man.” Gavin glared at her, shrugging off the hand, though it did work somewhat. “And you- I don’t see  _ you _ being the one with a possible murder code on his neck. If Gav here wants to talk a little while he drinks his coffee, he’s  _ allowed _ . If you don’t like it, find another partner.”

‘ _ Phck I’ve missed this woman _ .’ The grin he got from her defense was absolutely worth it as the bot frowned, looking between the two. “Given that as it may, Officer Chen, this matter does not concern you. I would like to get finished with this as soon as possible so we can find a way to disable the code, _thank you_.” The slight bit of attitude in the ‘thank you’ had Gavin snorting, even as Tina backed up very quickly. ‘ _ Pussy _ ,’ and he pushed the other’s chest. His hand still burned slightly, but nothing he wasn’t used to.

“Fucking come on before you annoy the rest of the officers in the breakroom.”

Gavin had to actually push, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about it. The guy felt like solid muscle to push against, even though it was hidden under fabric. One, traitorous, part of him wanted to see just what he was working with, while the sane and rational side supplied him with ‘ _ he could easily break any bone in my body huh? _ ’ Maybe it wasn’t that rational, because the thought didn’t exactly terrify him either. He walked back to his desk, setting the coffee down and pulling up some windows. He heard the other follow suite, and didn’t bother making idle chat. Instead he started pulling up phone records and social media accounts, trying to place these bodies at the club.

An hour was all it took for the RK900 to get him clips of each person at the bar. Gavin walked over, looking at the files. “Hey wait, that one on… Russet, right?”

“Correct.”

“Recognize him.” Gavin slid over to his desk, noting the yellow LED on his partner’s head for the motion. He sent a file over and waited. “I scanned the face, it’s registering as a JS400 model, I can’t get more info without scanning her thirium.”  
“Good thing I can then huh, name Winry Bellatrix, she works at a reformation school, and from the looks of these texts,” he sent them over as he spoke, “Bellatrix and Russet were close, planning a first date which none-too-ironically happens to be at that club.”

“She was recommended the club by the one security model.” Gavin blinked, before grinning.

“So she may be able to tell us something about him if nothing else.”

“Exactly. I’m glad to know your attitude isn’t an indicator towards your work.”  
“Phck off tincan, you haven’t _seen_ attitude yet.”

Gavin grumbled, but got up, checking to see if they had an address before he grabbed his gun and badge, shoving both of them into belt holsters. “Are you sure you should be out in public, detective?” Gavin rolled his eyes.

“I’ll be fine, I’m making a stop at a store to get a scarf.”

“I just don’t want to be tasked with defending you from your own lack of foresight.”

“Harr harr.” Gavin seen the other’s LED flash yellow, and his face finally expressed some kind of emotion. Confusion, but still, it was good to know he could emote. Somewhat.

Gavin could ask what the other’s deal was, if he had a name, anything honestly, but right now, he couldn’t really care. The other apparently had the perfect image of him from his interaction with pre-deviant Connor right? Then phck it.

He walked out to his car, noticing the cold chill to the air seemed wet. “ _ Fucking _ snow again…” He grumbled, regretting his club wear a bit.

“Yes, around 6 in the morning there’s a 70 percent chance of snow.” Gavin jumped, the other was  _ silent _ for being tall and broad, and Gavin turned to glare at him.

“Could’ve figured that out on my own. I’ve lived long enough in this damned city to know when it’s going snow, asshat.” The android merely raised an eyebrow at him, but said nothing to him. Gavin lead the way to his car, noting the other was following him. ‘ _ Phck, I haven’t cleaned. Oh well, maybe it’ll drive him nuts _ .’ Not that Gavin was a slob, but there were a couple soda bottles and some clothes on the back seat. Enough to take away the glamour of his manual power machine. He got into the driver’s side, waiting for the door to open and close on his right.


	2. Install

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin and Nines make progress, and come up with a hypothesis on how the mark works. Some somewhat-healthy talking happens, and Gavin gets a new scarf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! Second chapter! Formatting might be a bit weird on this one, it was acting up as I was spacing it, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it aha! I hope you guys enjoy this!

It wasn’t a long drive, but it was a silent one. The other seemed to be content just observing Reed, and it annoyed him, but it was better than being judged or anything. When it got too quiet, Gavin turned on some music, keeping it low to not disturb the other. The first song on his phone played, and Gavin found his fingers tapping to the beat. Gavin liked to say his tastes were varied, but they weren’t. “ _ Just in case my faith go- I live by my own law. I live by my own law. _ ” Mostly rap, pop, things with heavy beat or heavy lyrics. A little bit of rock, but Gavin blamed his generation for all that.

The trip into the store was made on his own, the plastic prick deciding to stay in the car. “Eh whatever, I’ll leave the heat running.” He dipped out, ignoring whatever protest the other had, and went into the store. It was late, so pickings were short, but after a couple minutes he came back out with a red infinity scarf, ditching his hoodie into the back seat for his leather jacket. Then he slid into his front seat, making sure one loop of the cloth was tight against his neck, covering the mark. “You like the color red,” the robo-cop spoke up, and Gavin jumped, forgetting he was there for a moment.

“Yeah, what of it? It’s a good color for me.” Gavin’s eyes narrowed, waiting for some kind of judgement to come. But there was none, blue eyes looking back to the road.  
“Red _is_ a good color for you,” was all he got instead, and Gavin felt himself relax a bit.

“Thanks.”

When they finally got to the apartment building she lived in, Gavin sighed. Of course it was an android only building, in the nicer part of town. “Something the matter detective?” And of course the other would speak now. ‘ _ Probably thinks I’m jealous _ .’

“How come we only go into the nicer parts of town to question people and shit? How come we can’t go to the nicer bars and clubs for once.” He seen the LED spin yellow, and put his hand up. “Don’t spew statistics at me dipshit, it’s rhetorical. I know  _ why _ , doesn’t make it any better.” He climbed out of the car, pausing the music and heading over to the apartment building's door. Pressing on it didn’t budge it, and he noticed a keycard scanner beside it. The android joined him shortly, and Gavin looked up to him. “Fucking locked, of course.” He was ready to walk away when he heard the door open behind him.   


  
Turning to look, he raised an eyebrow when the other held the door open. “Well Detective Reed, after you.” Gavin blinked, but he wasn’t about to look a gifted horse in the mouth.

“Must’ve not pushed hard enough,” he murmured, passing RK900 as he did. He went into the elevator, waiting for his partner to join him before hitting the floor for Bellatrix. Neither said anything, and soon they were at her door, Gavin knocking against it. It took a couple minutes, but soon the door opened, the girl answering it wearing pjs.

“How can I help you?” Her voice was static-y, and Gavin knew that was an after effect from overuse- or crying. She looked ragged, shoulders sagging, LED spinning a mix of yellow and red.

“We’re here to ask you some questions ma’am,” Gavin’s voice turned soft, and he didn’t miss the way his partner looked over. “It’s about a friend of yours, Justin Russet.” The name had an affect on her, eyes widening and LED turning full red.  
  
“You’re- you’re cops right?” Gavin pulled out his badge, nodding.

“May we please come in? This isn’t a conversation you want to have in the hallway.” She nodded, pulling back and opening the door for the two. Gavin led the way, looking over the apartment as he did. The place was a bit of a wreck, and he felt bad for the other. He knew for being a janitor, she would be a lot more tidy than this, but papers were scattered about, empty cups with streaks in them near the sink, and clothes were scattered in the hallway leading back to what Gavin presumed was her room.

“I’m… Sorry for the disarray, um, sit anywhere you’d like.”  
“It’s no problem miss.” He sat on a chair, looking up to his partner who stayed standing stock straight. He glared, jerking his head towards an empty chair while she cleaned up the table. The bastard rolled his eyes at Gavin, but relented, sitting in the chair beside his.

“You two are here because- because Justin’s dead right?” Gavin’s attention snapped back to the girl, face softening by the time she turned to face them.  
“You’re correct. You two were close right?” She nodded, wrapping an arm around herself.  
“I asked him to meet me at this club, and when I saw him- something… Weird happened. At first I didn’t remember anything of that night, but since then… Things came back in bits and pieces after each stasis. I thought he just- straight up left, because I could only remember walking to my house but…”  


  
Gavin waited, and scooted closer, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Take it easy. Describe everything that you can, please.” She nodded, looking up with a smile then looking to his partner.

“A-Actually! It might be better if he interfaces with me? If he’s allowed.” Gavin looked to him, and was glad he offered his hand. Watching the skin peel back, he had to catch himself from looking surprised. What he expected was the smooth white chassis he was used to, what he got was a dark grey, blue highlighting the joints and he looked  _ tough as fuck _ . ‘ _ Bulletproof material? I have to ask. _ ’

The girl seemed equally surprised, hesitantly taking his hand. Gavin watched as blue went through both their hands where they contacted, and let himself scan the house again. By the time they were done, he heard soft sniffling from her. “I… See,” came the strained reply from his partner, and Gavin wondered if he was unable to care, or just not good at showing it. “Thank you, for the interface Ms. Bellatrix. I’ll be happy to inform you no legal action will be taken against you, due to the coding that infected your systems.”

Gavin winced, noticing both of their yellow LEDs now. ‘ _ Smooth, real fucking smooth _ ,’ he bit back a sigh, instead turning to face her. “I’m sorry we had to dredge up bad memories, but let me assure you- what happened was not your fault. We will get the bastard who did this, and your help has been amazing.” Her mood-light calmed down a bit, getting a soft nod to his words.

“I- thank you. I wish- I could forget, but to forget means forgetting everything and I can’t- I can’t let go of him.” Gavin blinked, and then reached out, taking both her hands. “Everyone does. Everyone wishes they can forget when things like this happen. But, humans and androids alike, there’s no easy option to make the pain go away. You can drink, you can hide, but what happened still happened, and you can’t go back. What you can do,” he squeezed her hands, “is move forward. That’s what he would want, even with what happened.” He let go then, standing up with her eyes on him. “If anything else comes to you, or you need someone to talk to,” Gavin searched his pockets, looking for paper, and pulled out a sticky note pad from his jacket. “Got a pen- thanks- here, call this number to talk to us, and call this number for someone to listen.”

He tore off the note, holding it out to her and then, catching her finally smiling. “I- thank you detective…” Gavin shrugged, smiling back to her. He know she wanted a name, but it would be better that she didn’t know.

“No thanks necessary. Thank you for your time. RK900, you good to go?” He looked to his partner, raising an eyebrow at the yellow LED. His face was blank, and it wasn’t til he reached out to poke his forehead that his eyes narrowed, swatting his hand away.

“Sorry, was processing something. I’m good to go, detective. Thank you for your time, Ms. Bellatrix.” Gavin lead the way back out, waiting for the other two. RK900 just walked off, and Gavin sighed, turning to the girl.

“Thank you again detective. I hope I was truly able to help… What you said-”  
“Was nothing big. Seriously, get some rest. We’ll call you if we need anything.” He nodded to her, and walked down the hallway, hearing the door click behind him. His partner was waiting for him in the elevator, and Gavin glared while stepping in, jamming the button a bit roughly.

The doors shut, and Gavin hissed. “You know, Connor needs to teach you a thing or two about grieving.” He seen the flash of red before the other spoke.

“Did it come off that bad?”

“A bit… Hot tip, but always, always, stay by the door at the end. That’s when people are most likely to be vulnerable, and what you say there leaves the most impression. I’ve had a couple of times where I’ve been sweet enough to someone that they stop me at the door to tell me something else.” A couple floors of silence.

“I will keep that in mind. I was not made for… Questioning.” Gavin looked over, looking the other up and down once.  
“No shit, you look like Terminator but actually-” And Gavin shut up, immediately facing the doors that were opening. _‘No no no don’t you dare finish that sentence, he is not-_ ’  
“But actually what, Detective Reed?” The voice suddenly at his ear made him hit the door way harder than he needed, extremely grateful for the rubber stopper that kept it from banging.  
  
“Not fucked up! That’s what- now phck off. What did you get from the interface.” Quickly changing the topic, he slid into the car, turning it on while the other got in.

“Well, she remembers a lot more than what the other recalled. It might be worth giving him another visit in a few days. Her vision and hearing was extremely glitched, but her task lists seemed to have warped the minute she scanned Russet.”

“How so?”

“Well, she began to desire him. There were several objectives to kiss, hold-”

“I really don’t want to hear all the exact details Nines, fucking give me the short end.” There was a pause, a flash of red in a dark car.

“She entered the club wanting to pursue the start of a relationship with the victim, but as the night progressed, due to the coding, it turned into a passionate possession. When he rejected her sudden advances, due to their sudden and strong nature, the infectious coding changed to represent that. She killed him, in the alley, and then the coding had her return to the suspect and interface.”

Gavin growled, seeing the android’s head turn at that. “So, potentially, it’s amplifying feelings present in the android to turn them hostile?”

“Seems so… This- angers you detective?”

“Of course it fucking angers me! Half of you fucks are only now getting good grasps on this shit, which trust me, not even some humans can do, and now some sick bitch is getting her rocks off altering them.” Gavin watched as a car cut in front of him, and hit the horn, leaning out the window. “ _ PHCK YOU PRICK! _ ”

“Reed it is just past midnight, is that  _ really _ necessary?” The tone sounded- amused? And annoyed, and Gavin looked over.

“Abso-fucking-lutely. I’m pissed, they’re in my way, and I want to get back to the station and start getting the next one pulled up. If we have several cases of this going on, the probability of us even needing her interface goes down.”

His partner seemed to think that over, before a slight nod happened. “I suppose you’re right about that. If you’d like, I can continue to review camera feeds while we’re on the way to the precinct?”

Gavin shrugged, turning on the music again. An indie rock song reverberated through his speakers, low enough but heavy enough to settle in his core. “Yeah, if you want. I can’t do shit ‘til we get there, but you don’t really need me for that shit either.”  
“You don’t sound particularly sour about this.”

“Eh, even if I was, what use? Like, I’m not going to tell you to not do your damned best, I want to solve cases. Job comes first tincan, and that’s just how it is. If Fowler’s dumb enough to subject you to my brand of bullshit, well that’s on his ass. I have enough of a record to show I don’t need the fucking help at this point, unlike Anderson did.”

“Everyone expected a lot more… Bitching from you, if I’m to be blunt.”

“I’d rather you be blunt. Connor’s sugar-coating ways piss me the fuck off. But yeah I got that vibe  _ plenty _ from the nice silence we all shared in front of the interrogation room, thanks. Here’s the facts- my productivity can only go up with your help. You don’t annoy me with that ass-kissing shit like Connor did…” He trailed off.

It wasn’t exactly that in and of itself that pissed Gavin off he supposed, lips puckering as his eyebrows furrowed at the car in front of his. “I think there’s more to it.” Nines tone was soft this time, and Gavin cursed him for learning so quick.

“Yeah there fucking is. There’s a difference tincan, in knowing someone wants to be kind, between knowing someone’s mission objectives tell them to be kind. Connor wants to play the victim, fucking let him. I’ll be the first to admit that it was fucked what I did,  _ now _ that he can actually feel hurt from it. But I’m not going to say sorry for not seeing him as a feeling, living being when he wasn’t- at first. He did what he did in the beginning, not because he wanted to, but because there wasn’t another option.”

Gavin blaring the horn broke up his words, a soft growl of ‘ _ idiot _ ’ leaving him before he continued. “You can hate me for thinking this way too, I don’t really give a fuck. But I won’t say sorry for how I was, when Connor wasn’t Connor to begin with. He was an RK800, the android sent by Cyberlife.” Silence this time was heavy, and Gavin was glad  _ Starset _ started playing, turning it up slightly as ‘ _ My Demons _ ’ started playing. ‘ _ How fucking ironic given this wonderful small talk _ .’ He seen Nines- the RK900- look to the speakers, and then nothing. The ride wasn’t short either, and Gavin found himself sitting in the car when they finally got to the station. “Go ahead and head in.” He muttered, closing his eyes to the other’s look.

“Detective-”

“I said go, in. I won’t be longer than five minutes, time me if it makes you feel better.” There was a pause, but the door opened. Before it closed, Gavin could hear the other’s voice, quiet and reserved.

“I don’t hate you Detective Reed.” And then the door closed.

Gavin didn’t know what got him to open up so much. He hoped it would have chased the other away, he hoped the other would’ve hated him… But still, a part of him was  _ glad _ he didn’t. Yeah, there was more to say. There was more behind his initial hatred. But Gavin didn’t, _couldn’t_ , elaborate. Not to a new partner, not to anybody at this stupid precinct. They didn’t need to know the resident asshole had a heart. Feeling an itch inside him, Gavin tightened the infinity scarf for a moment. Not enough to do anything than feel a squeeze, it suddenly made Gavin miss his choker. ‘ _ Wear it tomorrow, no one will notice. _ ’ Gavin blinked, realizing that, then grinned, getting out of the car. ‘ _ Fuck yeah! _ ’

He got into the building, seeing his partner at his desk, working already, so he made a quick stop to grab another coffee, finishing off the pot there and looking around. It was night shift crowd, and Gavin checked the time. An all-nighter didn’t seem too bad, he slept well the night before anyways. So he settled in, getting to work on getting his lists back up. “Got anything iron giant?”

“And here I was beginning to enjoy  _ Nines _ .” Gavin choked on his coffee, hoping the other just missed his slip up of that nickname earlier.

“RK900 is a fucking hassle to say everytime, and just saying 900 makes me think of that _Sparta_ meme alright, don’t feel so smug.” He got a laugh, and nearly dropped his drink at it. One day. One day left with this fucker and he got him to  _ laugh _ and it was worth it.

His laugh was deep and low, something Gavin  _ needed _ to repeat, and he just hoped the coffee cup hid the way his face heated up. “I don’t I don’t- I wouldn’t expect too much out of you this early in our partnership." A pause, a flick of yellow. "Now, as I was before a sentient trash can interrupted me, I do have another match.”

“Sentient trash can, not bad fucker. Hit me with it.” Gavin grinned, putting the coffee aside as the video showed up on his screen. It was zoomed in, and Gavin recognized this as a video of the second victim walking down the street, parallel to the one the club was on. The girl on her arm was clinging to her, and they were obviously fighting.

“Phck, how’d I miss this the first time around?”

“Out of the range you checked, this isn’t on the way to her house, and you likely didn’t have easy access to these cameras either. I can’t get a scan of the girl’s model though, she never faces the camera.”

Gavin started pulling up the social media of Amelia Jones, and once he got some, started sending pictures over. “Sending you all the chicks she hangs with on social media, and some that have beef with her. Can you compare any of them?” It was a couple minutes before he heard a ‘ _ there! _ ’, pausing in his transfer to see which triggered the reaction. “That isss- Ashley Brighton. Lives with the Brighton family as a live in nanny, they took her in after the revolution probably. These two were not friends- seems like Ashley here had a bone to pick with Amelia- something about… Ah here.”

Gavin sent over a tweet, and watched as an eyebrow raised. “This is pathetic, and I’ve been working with you.”

“Phck you too, but yeah. They started fighting because Amelia Jones made fun of the way she dressed up while taking the Brighton’s kid out to the park. Ashley picked up on the girl taking a picture of her, confronted her, and they’ve been- er, they were fighting ever since.”

“She still wouldn’t go to these levels though over something so petty. Hopefully.” Gavin huffed, making a memo of where to visit Ashley at.

“Doubt it, remember, this seems to be amplifying existing feelings. Until Connor gets his friend to test it out, we won’t know for sure, but it probably sky-rocketed the existing anger Ashley felt. We need to approach her carefully, I doubt she’ll be as willing as Bellatrix was.”

“Unfortunately. I’ll leave you to that, but perhaps we should continue working on the rest of the list. It’s too late to be making more housecalls.”

“Phck yeah it is, lemme know when you get the next one. I’m gonna write up an update for Connor and Hank.”

“Good idea.”

Gavin paused, pulling up the email slowly. He  _ knew _ why the praise made him so happy, but he hated it at the same time, chugging his coffee and ignoring the heat. The rest of the night proceeded in that fashion, and soon, they had a victim for each body. The first one was added to the list, and despite their combined efforts, the fourth had went off the grid already. “Well, I suppose this is all we can do tonight. I do believe it’s far past time for you to clock out detective.”

“Oh yeah, Fowler won’t mind too much. He knows how I get with cases.” Gavin shrugged, throwing his cup in his little trashcan and pulling his coat back on. Despite telling himself not to care, he found himself still speaking. “Where are you heading?”

  
  


Nines paused, before his LED flashed yellow. “Anderson’s. Connor has offered me a room there until I am able to find a location suitable for myself.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, walking beside the other. “Of fucking course he did. Tell Connor to hurry his twink ass up so we can figure out if I need to wear a scarf for the indefinite future or not.”

“Twink…” Gavin paused, before grinning widely, causing a frown to form on the other’s face.

“Search it, I’ll wait.” And he did, despite the chill of the wind, he waited for the other to lookup ‘twink’. It took  _ seconds _ , maybe, but the small laugh was again very worth it.

“I’ll be sure to tell him, though you have no room to speak detective.”

“Ex-fucking-scuse you, I am a  _ twunk _ . Connor wishes he was cut like us.”

“Us?” Gavin backtracked, realizing what he said, but his cheeks were already red.

“Yeah- don’t tell me you aren’t ripped under that stupid collar, I know better. Anyways, get home safe or whatever- you got a ride right?” He looked around, not seeing a car that screamed ‘stiff, sarcastic bitch’ anywhere.

“I’m going to walk, the temperatures-”

“Phck right on off with that bullshit, I know you feel cold Connor already admitted that. Get in I’ll drop you off a safe distance away.”

There was a pause, and Gavin couldn’t ignore the look of surprise. So he got in instead, revving the engine obnoxiously. “Come on tincan, don’t got all night. I’d like to get some sleep before I’m back here in five something hours.” That worked well enough, as Nines crossed in front of his car, quickly getting in. The ride wasn’t as tense this time, or as long, Gavin pulling the car over a couple houses down.

“Thank you, Ga-”

“Don’t.” Gavin panicked, his heart racing as the other started to say his name. ‘ _ I don’t want him close, we aren’t friends, we’re just partners. Partners, that’s it. Partners. That’s. It. There’s no pain in partners. To be on a first name basis implies more and I can't do more- _ ’ “Don’t try no first name basis bullshit. Have a good night, Nines.”

He hated it, the heavy silence, but it was better than the alternative. Nines carefully got out and walked across the front of the car, down to Hank’s house. Gavin pulled down the next road, turning back for his place, trying to ignore the coldness he felt inside. He pulled up to his complex, yawning out of habit and turning the car off. He walked up to the door, pulling out his keycard and swiping it. He blinked, the hairs on the back of his neck prickling, and he looked in the reflection to try and see if anyone was behind him. ‘ _ Fucking weird… _ ’ Gavin sighed, heading into the building and making sure the door was closed before he went into the elevator. Just in case, he hit three buttons, and got out on the second one.

He liked where he lived honestly. Wasn’t the best of places, but kept him close to the station and there was a nice place to get delivery from nearby. Each floor had four apartments, two on each side, and Gavin walked to his on the far left, sliding his card in and entering. He was immediately greeted with soft mewling, bending over to pick up his cat. The tiny black kitten pawed at his scarf, causing Gavin to laugh softly. “Alright alright Furball, I got you. Did you miss your daddy huh?” Gavin purred to the kit, carrying him in. He checked the bowls, relaxing when the both had something in them, and set him down on the counter. “It’s alright, I missed you too. Come ‘ere, get a treat you needy bastard.”

It was quite some time till Gavin fell asleep. He woke up with a groan, wiping the sleep from his eyes, and started his usual routine. One cup of coffee started, followed by a shower, clothes haphazardly thrown on, then the coffee was chugged and the cat fed. He rubbed his head before grabbing the scarf he discarded on the counter, wrapping it around his neck, tighter than yesterday. Back to normal jeans and band tees, Gavin slid his boots on last, sighing as he combed his hair back. Suddenly, he remembered the fact he could wear one of his chokers, and rushed back into his room. He opened his sock drawer, pushing them aside for a box and opening it. He pulled out a simple one for today, soft, black, with white x’s and o’x along the metal clamps. “Alright, gucci. See you tonight Furball!” He called out, setting the empty coffee cup on the counter and bouncing out the door. As predicted, it was snowing lightly still, and Gavin couldn’t wait for spring to stop all this nonsense.

He continued however, sliding into his car and singing along to the songs that played. Today would be productive, he had a good feeling about it.


	3. Initialize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of playful banter, a lot of unraveling what makes Gavin tick. They talk, Gavin gets punched, and they manage to make zero progress on the case. What a lovely day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this answers some questions about what the code is doing! Also finally going through my canon Reed backstory feels nice ;u;
> 
> Thank you for all the love and support so far!

Gavin loved being early. He got to watch the switching of shifts, he got the freshest coffee, he got to catch up on the news, and even got to check evidence before the wonder bots did. Unfortunately nothing new was there, but it didn’t deter him, heading to his computer and pulling up the addresses they would head to. Right, they. Gavin had to hold back a snicker, knowing RK900 wouldn’t like being late like Hank. Just as he figured he’d hear bickering in fifteen minutes, the deep voice of his thoughts disturbed them. “I didn’t think you’d be a morning person detective.”

Gavin jolted, turning to see the other. No Anderson or Connor- “Did you really walk in the fucking snow?” He looked over the other, noticing instantly that he wore the same outfit, the only difference being the fact these seemed stiffer than yesterday, if possible. ‘ _ He fucking irons his clothes, or Connor does. Ironic. _ ’

“Again, the cold doesn’t bother me.”

“Alright Elsa, sit down before you start singing ‘ _ Let It Go _ ’ on me.” He waved to the other desk, finishing off his coffee.

“I’m hardly Elsa, thank you. I’d be- Hanz.”

“The bad guy? Really?”

“Who would you be then?”

“Anna obviously. So who first? Ashley or Dave?”

There was a pause, and Nines, the  _ shit _ , leaned in, head on folded hands. “Anna tries to marry Ha-”

“Finish that sentence and I swear I’ll throw this empty cup right at your dumb, smirking face. Since you’re being a little shit and it’s my car, Ashley first. Phck you.” And there was that  _ grin _ , smooth and perfect and  _ oh _ , his face went red. He knew it did, quickly getting up and pulling the scarf tighter. It rubbed against the skin where his collar ended, and Gavin focused hard on the feeling there instead of the way Nines made him freakout so easily.

“After you detective, and I wouldn’t risk pulling that too much tighter. The tension in it suggests it’ll choke you out if you continue.”

“I can only hope tincan. I can only hope.”

They got to the car just as Tina pulled in, the girl hopping out and waving them down. Obligated, Gavin waited for the eventual tackle hug, seeing Nines LED turn yellow. “Hey fucker! Thought you were running off without my hug bitch?”

“Tina you are the neediest hoe I’ve ever met, how does your girlfriend put up with you.”

“Audrey is a saint unlike you, Gavin ‘grouchass’ Reed. Plus, she loves me.”

“Uh huh, I’m still calling bullshit.” Nines cut in, and Gavin had to make sure he looked at the other right. Nines looked  _ annoyed _ , glaring at Tina while his hand remained on the handle of the passenger door.

“Officer Chen, if you do not proceed, you will be late. You can catch up with Detective Reed when we return.”

Tina, true to her nature, quickly backed off, hands held up. Gavin muttered ‘ _ scaredy cat’ _ under his breath at her, grinning as she took a step back. “Sorry RK900! I’ll get going, see you later Gavie.” She darted immediately when she finished, and Gavin laughed.

“You know she’s terrified of you for some dumbass reason.”

“And you aren’t?”

“Phck no. Why would I be?” Nines looked at Gavin with  _ exasperation _ , and Gavin felt fucking  _ proud _ to get so many emotions from the other.

“Many reasons, I’ll list them later, we should get to Ashley before noon detective.”

“Right right, let’s go.” With that they got in the car, and Gavin didn’t bother with music this time, just cracking his window to listen to the city wake up.

It was a comfortable silence, though when Gavin looked over, he seen the yellow LED on his partner’s temple, spinning slowly. “Don’t think too hard sparky, you’ll blow a circuit.”

“Incorrect, but I appreciate the half-meant sentiment. I was just… It would be…” The other seemed to actually struggle, Gavin spotting red.

“Nines spit it out.”

“Last night.”

Gavin felt the sharp inhale rather than heard it, but just held back letting it out in a whistle. ‘ _ You brought this on yourself _ .’ “Alright sure. Last night. What got your mood light going nuts.”

“It’s an LED detective, and- I… Searched, through our conversations the whole night… Is there a specific reason you hate androids whom haven’t deviated yet?” Nines turned to face him, all stiff posture and Gavin didn’t know if it was because he lacked the style to sit otherwise, or if he didn’t want to piss him off.

“There is. Two reasons, that I can- actually three. I don’t want to talk about this on the way to a scene tincan.”

“You don’t want to talk about this at all, but I feel that it’s a conversation we need to have nonetheless,  _ fleabag _ . I have- conflicting information on you. It’s creating system instabilities and they’re distracting.”

“Deal with it, I’m a distracting motherfucker. Also, fleabag? You’re getting better at that.”

“ _Reed_. I’m not asking you to go over everything, but if there is something I can know to clear up why Connor seems to be so against our partnership-”

“Connor can suck my left foot, he’s not my partner, and if he doesn’t want to talk to me like a big boy now, then that’s his problem. Hell, I don’t blame him for being against this, he has every right to be. So cut the shit, why are you  _ really _ asking.”

“I want to know what caused you to be such a dick to Connor.” ‘ _ There, that so hard to say? _ ’ Gavin inhaled, checking the time it would take to get to Ashley’s. With the morning traffic, a while yet.

“First things first, I’m just a dick. That’s just how it is, don’t like it, phck off. I couldn’t care less.”

“This was more than your normal hostility.”

“Getting there, don’t interrupt. Second off, you picture this. Working your ass off, getting shot, fucked up, left in alleys beaten from info gone bad. Work your cases ‘til you’re nothing but bruises and coffee. And you watch, as your lieutenant, a reason you followed into this line of work, falls like a sack of rotten potatoes because he was dealt a shitty hand. Like I get it, fucking- the man had every reason to grieve.”

Gavin turned on some music, not wanting the only thing echoing in his head his own anger. “And then, when you’ve lost hope in him ever being the lieutenant again, some pretty faced twink with pre-programmed bullshit to befriend everyone suddenly gets him to straighten his shit out. So there’s the second reason I was a dick to mr-fucking-perfect.”

“You didn’t like any non-deviant android, despite deviancy still being very hush-hush.”

“And I still don’t. I’m fucking  _ glad _ New Jericho exists, that robo-jesus is working on making sure everyone’s free. Good on him the smooth fucker. I had- experiences with some fuckers.”

A silence, and Nines eyes never left Gavin’s face, and Gavin growled at how the clear blues looked so damn pretty. ‘ _ I’ma kick his creator’s ass. _ ’ “I dated one. Without realizing that you fuckers couldn’t  _ feel _ . It was at a club, and I didn’t realize the sole reason he existed was to get dumb fuckers like me to keep coming back. I thought we were dating, knew his name, knew he preferred the nights they played EDM over pop, knew that he- liked my scars and stubble. Thought that he liked that. Found out when I tried to pull him out the door on our… 6th date I think? He didn’t actually like anything- the club owner came over and- just by speaking- the guy pulled away and just sat back down at the bar.”

The song playing had a steady, fast beat, no words yet, just vibrations pumping through speakers. “Fucking was  _ pissed _ , embarrassed- heartbroken. Last time I actually dated too I think. Owner apologized, saying that ‘it was only there to earn regular customers’ and that he ‘didn’t think anyone was stupid enough to fall for a plastic’. Well guess fucking what. Never went back there after that, can’t.”

“Is the place still open?” Nines’ voice was surprisingly blank, and when Gavin looked over, he was confused by how the other looked. What was loose hands by his side and a straight posture was now hands gripping knees, a red LED, tense and-  _ something _ .

“Yeah, nothing they were doing was like Eden club levels. Guy just had some androids there to make it seem busier than it was, have them befriend people to keep coming back. They should still be running, but it’s- the far past.”

Something new came on, a dark and honestly fucked up song that Gavin loved the instrumental of. “There were two other incidents,” Nines started, and his voice was so damn cautious.

“Yeah. One’s real easy to explain- my step-brother is robo-god.” He waited for that to settle in, and seen the way Nines suddenly turned.

“There are no records to back up that claim-”

“Of fucking course there aren’t. Do you really think I wanted to spend my life living in that fucker’s shadow? With his help, I had my records just list my father. You don’t have access to my medical without hacking it, and the marriage was kept hush hush because Eli was a child prodigy. But go ahead, snoop further, you got my permission or whatever you need tincan.”

There was silence before Nines’ LED settled onto yellow. “Does Fowler even know?”

“Nope, don’t want him too either. Me and Eli- we talk  _ now _ , now that he’s not so stuck up from fame and shit, but at first there was just- bitterness. It translated towards you fucks after so long, and I guess I hated knowing that- well, I hated knowing that you guys always were  _ able _ to deviate and be yourselves, but couldn’t.”

“You were mad everyone  _ wasn’t _ a deviant? You realize how ironic that is given your profession.”

“Not at all. My job is to capture criminals and stop crime. I met deviants before Markus decided to launch himself off of radio towers. Often, they were scared, running away from someone. I…” Gavin gripped the wheel, looking to his hands. “I helped a few of them. Told them to take out their LED, told them where to get spare parts, how to charge up without getting caught. Deviants didn’t need to steal if they weren’t hurt to begin with, and many of them were just trying to get away from pain.”

“Huh, the asshole detective  _ does _ have a heart.”

“Phck off,” despite the words, Gavin was smiling, looking over to Nines. The other hadn’t looked away yet, and Gavin felt heat come to his face at that fact. “Connor’s only met me at work. You can’t base your whole view of someone with a couple meetings Nines. It’s the phrase ‘don’t judge a book by it’s cover’, but instead of book it’s a bitch.”

That got Nines to laugh, LED filtering back to blue at last. When he calmed they were about ten minutes away. “There is- one more incident right?” Gavin paused, and then took a deep breath.

“Yeah. A gang- they used androids to do their dirty work, corrupting their codes just enough so they could shoot to kill without feeling a thing. That was the last incident before Connor- that kind of… It just made me hateful. You stare into someone’s eyes, backing yourself against the alley, and you  _ know _ they don’t feel anything, that this isn’t their fault, their choice- but you still have to make a decision to take a two-by-four and smash their thirium pump out.”

“You regret killing non-deviants.”

“They never had a choice Nines. Try living your whole life knowing that they _could_ , but they don’t, and still having to pretend that shit doesn’t phase you. I mean, shit- that was fucked-”  
“No I- believe I understand… I was created only to hunt and kill deviants, targets, enemies, no matter what they were, what they did, anything. My coding still… Insists on that, occasionally, when my emotions are too strong for me to grasp yet. Yet now that I can see people for who they are, for what they’ve done, and decide for myself the best course of action to take… It feels… Horrendously overwhelming. There is no way to quell the basic ‘instincts’ of mine, without facing guilt.”

Gavin pulled up, parking the car then reaching over. He wasn’t gentle, prying the other’s hand off his knee and gripping it instead. “Believe it or not, that will never go away tincan. You’ll always feel guilt when your hands get bloody doing this job. But, think of the blood that wasn’t spilled, the tears that will finally get to stop. We do this job because we’re the only ones that know- for every drop we spill, we have faith it will stop a gallon from following… Don’t tell Hank, but yeah I stole that line from him. First time I shot someone.”

Nines smiled to him then, and turned his hand over. “Thank you G- Er, Detective Reed.”

Despite every cell in his body rebelling, every electric impulse of his brain crying ‘ _ no you stupid bitch _ ,’ Gavin smiled back. “Fuck it robocop, if you’ve lasted long enough to hear about my stupid sobstory, I think you’ve earned the ‘Gavin’ card. But- don’t fucking go soft on me or I’m silly-stringing your entire desk, understood?”

“Understood… Meatbag.”

“You bitch!” Gavin laughed, getting out of the car at that, his grin wide. “You had to ruin that so perfectly didn’t you, ya fucking shitlord.”

“Only because I couldn’t let you beat me to it. Please control yourself detective, we’re in public.”

“Oh phck you!” He walked up, making sure he didn’t yell that incase the kid was home sick. He knocked on the door, turning to look up at Nines. Hands stayed clasped behind his back, but he leaned over slightly, towering over Gavin. His heart sped up foolishly at it, knowing the other was still teasing him.

“Fuck you for being so tall,” he whispered, glaring at him though still grinning.

“I can’t help the fact you’re a short shit- a small and angry detective, Gavin.”

“I am not short!” The door opened, and Gavin turned. It wasn’t Ashley who answered the door, rather the mother.   
  


“May I help you two?” Gavin straightened up, pulling out his badge and holding it up.

“Yes ma’am. I’m Detective Reed, and this is my partner,” Gavin paused, looking back and letting the other introduce himself.

“Nines, please. We’re here to ask your nanny Ashley a few questions?” The woman went pale as Nines finished up, but Gavin could barely focus, his head fuzzy with the way Nines so casually accepted the nickname.

“Oh yes, come in come in, she’s in the kitchen helping me prepare dinner.”

It was needless to say that the trip there was useless. Ashley, as they predicted, wouldn’t allow an interface, nor would she speak much of that night. Gavin could tell her stubbornness infuriated Nines, watching him grip at his pants again. So Gavin wrapped it up, managing to get her to admit she interfaced with the pink-eyed mastermind at least. Gavin escorted Nines out with a hand between his shoulder blades, and let him get in the car first. When he slid in after him, he heard a frustrated growl, body tensing at the noise.

‘ _ Where does he get off sounding so fucking good. _ ’ Gavin swallowed lightly, tightening the scarf so it was back to pressing against his neck. “She was a waste of time.”

“Uhhh- maybe. Yeah I mean-” Gavin cursed the scrambled thoughts in his head, and instead turned the car on, glad Nines was content glaring at the building and not realizing what a mess he turned the detective beside him into. He got himself together thankfully and made a mental note to pull Tina aside and yell about how his tincan partner was driving him mad. “We had a feeling she was going to do this,” he started, much more coherent this time. “At least she did confirm interfacing with the suspect, so we’ll have her side of the story whether or not she wants to give it.”

“Eventually. Do all cases crawl like this?”

“Pretty much. Hey, if you last, maybe you’ll get paired up for undercovers with me. I have a feeling you’ll like those.”

Nines raised an eyebrow, turning to Gavin so he could see so, and his LED was thankfully on blue again. “You say that like it’s exciting. You really like undercover that much?”

“Nines, _look_ at this face. I don’t exactly scream ‘friendly neighborhood law man’. I was made for undercovers, been living a lie for years and believe it or not, I have a way of working people. I like actually being useful.”  
“You are plenty useful detective, even outside of undercovers,” his voice sounded stern, and Gavin laughed at the way he felt scolded.

“Hah nice one. But seriously, I think you’ll like them too.”

“Hopefully we’ll get another one soon then. But first we need to deal with this one.” And Nines pointed to Gavin’s neck, the mark hidden under cloth.

“Yeahhh- speaking of, can you bug Connor about it?”

“He’s going to be annoyed, but I feel in the mood to do so anyways.”

“Annoy him or ask?”

“Both.”

Gavin laughed at that, missing the smile it caused as he turned the music down to be polite. “Phck yeah, I’m glad someone actually can do so without getting their ass kicked now.” The rest of the ride was quiet, Gavin taking them to the final place they had to visit. It was about thirty minutes til Gavin was jostled out of his peaceful driving trance- listening to the sudden bout of laughter beside him.

“He did not appreciate that, I’m sure of it.”

Gavin snorted, regretting not having a self driving car right now. “ _ Oh no _ , what did you do?”

“Well, I asked him about trying to do the test earlier, and he said he may be able to get Josh to help out tomorrow, noonish. I kept asking him however, on the warrant’s status. After the 31st prompt, he forcefully disconnected the line after yelling he was ‘busy’. So the status on that is still pending.”

“You’re fucking amazing tincan. Phck, can’t wait to get into the office and just see the annoyed look on his face.”

“I try. He tends to annoy me just as well, it’s due time for someone to return the favor.”

The got to the next house and Gavin tensed, scanning the area. The door was slightly ajar, and the car was cold. “Nines-”

“I’m on it Reed. I’ll go around back you take the front.” If this was anyone else, Gavin would’ve rebelled at the orders. Being Nines, he simply huffed, sliding out of his car and approaching the front door. He placed himself beside the wall, kicking it open just enough to clear the main room.

A table was pushed over, the couch askew from the tv, there was a bookshelf knocked over. He cleared each room, meeting Nines at the stairs. “Stay down here in case they run down,” Gavin ordered, voice serious as he went up. He didn’t miss the spin of red, but he hoped the other would listen to common sense. Heading up the steps, he listened closely for any sort of sound. He got a break when he saw the light coming from a doorway be broken by a quick shadow, and moved towards it.  _ ‘One… two… _ ’ On his own three, he whipped around, and immediately a fist greet his face, falling back on his ass as his nose started bleeding. “ _ PHCKER _ ,” his voice was a growl, and he watched the other head downstairs. Not wanting to waste a minute, he entered the room, seeing the android they were going to question laying in his bed, thirium pump beside him.

Quickly, he moved, slotting it back in and running through every wire and check. “Come on come on, don’t give up yet…” He got zapped when he pressed his hand against torn circuitry, but it worked, the man gasping and buzzing. “Phck- hey hey- relax, I’m Gavin Reed from the Detroit Police Department.” Gavin pulled out his radio, switching it on and speaking into it. “Detective Reed, I need android medical assistance,” listing off the address and the issue, he checked with the guy to make sure he would be fine. Then he ran, feet tearing through the house despite the pain. ‘ _ Nines- I haven’t heard anything Nines- _ ’ The name kept repeating, and he slid down the last two steps, wincing as he turned the corner. He seen drops of blue trail to the back door and followed them.

He didn’t know if he felt more punched now or when he actually got hit. Nines was- more than fine. He had the other android on the ground, shoulder ripped open and thirium spilling out. One foot on his back, he was picking fucking  _ metal _ out of his teeth, and Gavin swore if he wasn’t losing blood out of his nose he would’ve felt it rush south. “ _ Thank phck you’re alright _ ,” he whispered, sagging now, but apparently this fucker  _ heard _ that, LED spinning yellow as he turned. Seeing Gavin it went red, and his eyes- holy  _ fuck _ the different shades of blue and white circled around and Gavin was having  _ issues _ .

“Wish I could say the same for you. I heard you call in medical- is Dave alright?” A hand reached out, and Gavin moved forward, letting Nines hand meet his face. “It’s not broken, miraculously, but you’re going to need to ice it.”

Gavin nodded, letting his eyes close. “Fucking- gave me a heart attack. The bastard sucker punched me. Dave’s alright, had to put his heart back in and adjust some wires, he’s going to need some fixed. You- are you good” Opening his eyes back up, the first thing he saw was that damn, knowing  _ smile _ .

“If only Connor could see you care now, I hope you know I have bragging rights to your friendship.”

“Competitive fucker, you’re fine,” he grumbled in turn, reaching up to pull out a stray wire. “Fucking  _ wicked _ teeth Nines, I’m jealous.”

“You are confusing Reed, you really shouldn’t be so enthralled with something that just tore someone’s shoulder out.”

“Let me enjoy this,” ‘ _ Phck you for kinkshaming me, _ ’ came the thought after, then Gavin heard the sirens. “You got him?”

Nines looked down, the android looking between them fearfully. “If he moves, he loses an arm, isn’t that right?” A quick nod, and Gavin laughed at that.

“You got bragging rights for friendship, I got bragging rights for having the cooler partner.” He patted Nines shoulder, not missing the surprised look. “See you in ten, Nines.” He went back inside, and noticed the way his ankle hurt. He was glad the other didn’t notice that, no doubt he would’ve caught shit for hurting himself just to check on Nines. Taking it slow, he went back into the room, seeing Dave sitting up somewhat.  
  
“Detective Reed,” came the soft, cautious voice, and Gavin nodded, sitting beside him.

“Help’s coming buddy, just take it easy.” A soft hum, and Gavin rubbed circles on the other’s back. It was minutes before two EMTs came up, bags of thirium and a stretcher. Gavin got up, moving out of their way. “Found him with his thirium pump removed. The bastard frayed some wires in there, and there might be pieces broken off his chassis too.”

“Thank you detective, on three.” He watched as they lifted him then went to the bathroom, running the sink to rinse blood off his face. When he looked up he jumped, seeing Nines in the mirror.

“Turns out that was the security guard that ran. He’s being taken by the EMTs to get checked out, then he’ll be waiting at the station for questioning. His stress levels are already high, I believe I can get a confession from him.”

“Good shit Nines, lemme just-”

“Here.” The other pressed into his side, grabbing toilet paper and then reaching up to dab at Gavin’s face. Gavin melted into the touch, letting Nines maneuver his face as he needed. “Better. How come you make such a mess in so little time?”

“Just that kinda guy, dipshit.” Gavin realized very suddenly that his eyes had become lidded, and pulled away quickly, taking some water to run over his shirt. “Anyways- we need to get going then. Got two people to question.”

“Gavin.” His name sounded so damn good coming from the other’s lips, and Gavin looked up despite knowing how obvious it was becoming. “You sure you’re fine? You’re levels are elevating and-”

“Nines,  _ drop it _ . I’m fine I’m really- really fine. Please can we go- that way.” He pushed on the other’s chest, gentle of course, his eyes unable to look up away.

Nines did relent eventually, his LED spinning yellow as Gavin hurried down the steps, wincing only slightly. He was bruised and fucked up, self-conscious as fuck, yet Nines was so damn…  _ Nines _ . Cautious, careful, caring-  _ attentive _ . Gavin was needy man, and the other was checking every box and he didn’t realize it and it drove Gavin mad. He got out to the car, and regretted kicking his smoking habit last year as he felt the need to fidget with something. Instead he turned his music on, sinking into his seat. The door opened up and closed, and he vaguely heard the song switch.

“All good to go iron giant?”

“If you are detective dipshit.” Gavin grinned, amused by his own comments coming back to him, and started off to the precinct. Luckily it didn’t take them very long, and he pulled in. Before he could get out though, he felt a hand grab his chin, turning his face to the clear blues of his partner.

“Nines?” Curse the way his breath caught, focusing on the other’s face.

“Checking to make sure you’ve cleaned yourself up detective, hold still.” Gavin gulped, the order jumping through his head and rooting itself in him. But then Nines grinned, exposing sharp teeth and Gavin knew his focus went there. “We never did finish our conversation about your endearing obsession with my teeth.”

“Nines not now you phck- we are in the parking lot!”

Gavin was  _ not _ running away, he was just prioritizing his job, quickly getting out of the car and walking towards the doors. He didn’t need to hear Nines’ footsteps to know the fucker was right behind him, but the gentle  _ nudge _ of an elbow at his side was appreciated, Gavin nudging right back. They got into the office, and Gavin snorted seeing Connor and Hank working on something. “Hey hey, Connor to our right.” 

Nines looked over, smiling slightly. “I’ll inform him of my latest achievements. He’s… Unnerved, by my upgrades.”

“Good, I wanna see this shit.” Gavin crossed his arms, watching as Nines walked over to the wonder duo. Just watching Connor look up and  _ startle _ was hilarious, Gavin holding back his laughter. Nines began speaking, and just to put icing on the cake, did a toothy smile, and Gavin snorted loudly as Connor backed up, hands coming up. He could faintly catch the fake ‘oh wow’ on Connor’s lips, and then Hank got up. He started saying something, Nines returning to his stiff posture, so Gavin walked over.

“If I ever hear of you spamming Connor like you did this afternoon-”  
“Sup chucklefucks,” Gavin interrupted, stepping closer to Hank, putting himself between him and Nines.

“Reed, don’t you have a bar to parade around in.”

“Sorry old man, seems I’m actually still working that string of murders, you know, the one you and Connor  _ are _ helping with, right?” Gavin’s voice was teasing in the way it was before the revolution, cocky, smug, all growls and a roll of his shoulders. Inviting the first punch. He could see Hank tense up and grit his teeth, but then Connor cut in.

“We are- We still don’t have the warrant for Aria, however I noticed in your reports you went to visit one of the androids affected?”

Gavin was going to call him out for hovering on the case, but dropped it, looking to Nines instead. “That’s correct, last night we went to visit Ms. Bellatrix. She was willing to interface, and I got an overview of how the coding affects the systems. As Detective Reed helped me figure out, it’s believed this takes existing emotions and amplifies them towards the target. We also went and talked with Ms. Brighton, but she refused to say anything beyond that she interfaced with Aria. We will question Dave when he’s stable as well.” Connor hummed, interfacing with the computer at is side.

“Make sure to turn that all in fully, we could Bellatrix’s statement in speeding up the warrant process. I’m sorry I can’t make anything go faster, but you two are making progress on your own it seems!”

Connor looked between them, LED spinning yellow and then Nines doing the same. Gavin didn’t like it, feeling left out of something, and with Hank sitting back down, he didn’t know what to do. Thankfully, whatever the two were doing ended abruptly, Nines growling lowly. Gavin watched as Hank startled along with Connor, but his attention was on keeping his face from turning red. ‘ _ PHCK whoever thought this fucker needed to growl like this! _ ’ He felt like screaming at the unfairness of being assigned to the embodiment of everything that turned Gavin on.

“I can handle  _ myself _ , Connor.” A hand placed onto the detective’s shoulder, and in one easy move he was turned, being marched back to their desks.

Looking up to bitch, he stopped seeing the anger on his partner’s face, LED red and spinning fast. “Nines wait-” He heard Connor call out as they passed their desks, and Gavin just let himself be lead into the break room. Tina, of course, was chilling in there, choking on a donut as they entered, but otherwise it was empty. Everyone was on patrols or working at their desks, Gavin figured. Even though Nines stopped, the detective didn’t move, instead taking Nines hand. Only when it loosened up did he pull back, tugging the android by his hand to sit on the couch. He moved then to get a coffee, and searched for a bottle of thirium. Finding it, he warmed up a mug while his coffee poured.

Bringing both back, he kept nudging his partner til the other got out of his own head, going to snap at Gavin. “Detec- oh.” His LED fell to yellow, and Gavin grinned, sipping his own coffee.

“Drink, or don’t- whatever. You seemed fucking gone so I got you a cup out.”

“Thank you Gavin.”

“Yeah whatever, don’t get used to it…” Gavin scooted beside the other, resting against him. He was trying to offer physical contact without being too obvious, knowing that it always helped him when he was pissed. After a couple minutes he felt a hand rest on his knee, looking down to see the sleeves of his partner’s coat. He said nothing, just smiled, and after a couple minutes of watching the news, his coffee was gone and so was Nines’ thirium.


	4. Activate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another dead end, another great idea. Who knew how protective Hank and Connor could be though? Or how well Nines learned how to play people- especially Gavin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *posts without summary*  
> Woops! Heyo! Thanks for all the love so far for real guys. I'm so happy everyone likes it so far!

Turns out that Dave was a jealous man. They didn’t talk about the break room, and Gavin didn’t want to pry. When Nines got up, straightening himself out and mentioning that Dave was ready for questioning, that was that. Gavin rinsed out Nines’ mug and threw his cup away, high-fiving Tina as they left. He got some texts from her, all along the lines of ‘ _ what the fuck _ ’, but ignored them to focus on the case. Dave was helpful, but only telling them what they knew. ‘ _ At least we prevented someone dying today, _ ’ Gavin thought, sighing as they got into the elevator of the hospital.

“Unfortunately, I see no further way to proceed on this case.” Nines’ voice was at least as agitated as he felt, and Gavin nodded to it.

“I want to try heading back to the club. Who hired those security, since it’s an android ran club, and what connection could they have? And why didn’t they report the strange way Aria would walk off with somebody  _ to the back _ instead of out the front?”

“You think they might have a part in it?”

“If not that, then maybe they’re friends with one of the trio. They could give us an insight to  _ why _ .”

“Good place to go as any.”

This time when they got to the car, Gavin looked over to Nines. His LED would occasionally spin yellow, a fraction running around once or twice, before it would settle. “Hey tincan.”

“Yes fleshsack.”

“Wanna drive?” That got Nines to look up, Gavin holding up his keys for the other to take. “I wanna mess with my phone, and it’s not self-driving. You seem like you need the distraction anyways.”

“You’re very observant today, Reed.” Something was off about that, but the small smile had him relaxing anyways.

“Don’t partnerships need both of us to watch each other’s back? Come on, you wanna drive or no?”

Nines walked back to his side, taking the keys and tapping the top of Gavin’s head, causing the man to hiss. “Tall asshole- I can take those keys back!”

“If you can reach them, maybe.”

“Oh  _ phck _ you, watch me-” He started to reach up, slow, waiting to see Nines’ reaction. A brief spin of yellow and the bastard held the keys out of his reach,  _ just _ out of his reach.

“I’m watching detective and I must say, not impressed. Come on, you can think of a way to retrieve these can’t you?” Gavin's eyes narrowed but he was still grinning. One hand on Nines shoulder, he seen the yellow as Gavin tried to climb Nines basically, pulling himself up with his other hand wrapped around Nines arm. Higher now, he was able to reach up and grab the keys, holding them in front of Nines face and sliding back down.

His triumphant grin only got brighter when Nines looked shocked, and Gavin opened the door for the other. “Don’t say I can’t do something Nines, you’ll find out I got detective for more than my good looks.” The other seemed to break out of his stupor at that, and Gavin swore he was seeing shit, but the other actually looked  _ embarrassed _ .

“I didn’t think you’d  _ rise _ to the challenge.”

“Oh that was terrible and beautiful.” Gavin laughed softly, handing him the keys and getting into the passenger side. Messing with the radio, Gavin bit his lip, shuffling through different genres than usual. He quickly made a playlist of popular music in various genres, top 3 of everything he could think of. Clicking on country and 80's rock and roll made him want to shrivel up, but he still added it.

When Nines settled in the car, Gavin played it, starting off with his own least favorites and sitting so he could casually watch Nines- and pass it off for watching the gauges. The other raised an eyebrow, and Gavin watched as the LED spun blue. Then yellow, and suddenly the song fast forwarded. It was relaxing to watch the almost perfectly smooth shift of speed and stop, and he wondered if the other barely needed to put thought into this. He also picked up on the five miles he would let himself go if he could. He kept an eye on the list, watching Nines completely skip the country section. ‘ _ Thank fuck. _ ’

He paused on the older rock, but passed through all of it too. The older rock, the older rap and hip hop, then there was a pause at jazz. “Gavin- this is not your music list.” Gavin looked down to notice the bossa nova jazz was left on, and he could deal with this. Jazz was pretty alright, reminded him of a coffee shop and he added some coffee shop favorites to follow the next three.

“Nope, it’s not,” he answered simply, looking up to Nines to see him looking down to him, eyebrow raised.

“What’s with the change?” ‘ _ Blunt _ .’ Gavin shrugged, glad the songs weren’t being skipped. He started on a new playlist, not being able to hide it because he knew the bastard could just hack it if he got curious enough. He named it ‘ _ 9 to life _ ’, grinning at the joke.

“Felt like trying something new out, don’t like it?”

There was a pause, before Nines spoke again. Gavin absolutely wasn’t watching his LED light up the other side of the car yellow then blue. “I do like it. I haven’t listened to much music outside of what Anderson and you listen to, didn’t know there was something… This appealing.”

“What, jazz? It’s alright, I got some coffeehouse lined up too. Though are you for real about not listening to something other than heavy metal and my fucked up brand of aesthetic?”

“I do not think it’s ‘fucked up’, as you say. Your music tastes are full of  _ meaning _ , I’ve learned. You don’t listen to any rap, but specifically songs that deal with heavier topics-”

Gavin coughed, rubbing across his nose. “Yeah yeah- quit avoiding the question. You haven’t listened to anything else though?”

“Simply hasn’t been on my priority list.”

“Would you like me to make this a whole ass journey then?”

“As opposed to a half-assed?” Nines looked over when Gavin laughed at that, hand dropping to cover his mouth and muffle himself.

“Phck you- you know what I meant!” Despite the curse, he was still laughing a bit.

“I suppose it would be a good way to pass time, plus the exposure would give me ammo to use against Hank.”

With another grin, Gavin fixed the playlist currently on, starting to mix it up with everything he hadn’t played yet. By the time they had got to the club, they figured out a few things. Nines liked jazz and classical, and he also liked Gavin's soft pop. Gavin got out of the car when they stopped, and Nines was at his side almost instantly. “Alright, is this place even open this early? They should be re-stocking right?”

A short pause- “Yes. Currently the bartender and the owner should be inside, and any new security if they’ve managed some yet.” Gavin nodded to that, walking ahead and getting the door for Nines.

“After you terminator.”

“Try to behave yourself.”

“Pfft. As if.” He walked in behind his partner, and noticed the familiar bartender immediately. Walking over, the other looked up, and Gavin could see the frown.

“We’re not open yet,” came the annoyed voice, and Gavin held up his hands, pulling out his badge.

“Yeah we know, didn’t want to do this during club hours. Mind if we ask you and your boss some questions?” There was a spin of yellow, and the detective was willing to bet the guy was texting his boss.

“Alright, what do you want to know? My boss will be over shortly.” Gavin looked back to Nines, and suddenly wished he could do that secret talking thing too. But he couldn’t instead looking back to the bartender.  
  
“We just want to know how you guys ended up hiring your previous security. Trying to trace back their tracks is all.” The bartender blinked, and his LED went yellow before he responded with a shake of his head.

“I wouldn’t know anything about that personally. I know my boss only hires people they know- we met during the revolution.” Gavin frowned, shoulders sagging a bit.

“I’m glad you got a friend out of that whole ordeal. May we wait for your boss then?” The bartender seemed surprised, but nodded.

“Just avoid leaning on anything, I just cleaned from the mess days ago.” Gavin muttered another sorry, and felt a hand on the back of his arm. It pressed and he walked with Nines, waiting by the corner of the bar.

“What’s up?”

“Simply moving to keep out of the way.” Gavin raised an eyebrow, but let it go, instead looking to the door. He heard footsteps, and from the basement came the boss. She was a shorter android, surprisingly, wearing a stiff suit and LED bright red. When she looked up, her expression went from sour to highly annoyed, and Gavin felt himself bristle. Nines hand squeezing his arm was the only thing that kept him polite.

“Oh joy, the guy that got my place torn up and his friend, how endearing. Ben said you were asking about my security detail?”

Nines spoke up now, voice flat and Gavin secretly enjoyed how it made the other instantly tense. He could see how her shoulders pulled up and lips pulled into a flat line. “We were. Ben revealed you only hire people you know, is that also true for your security.”

“It was. I knew the one guy, we worked together, before the revolution. When it ended, he was left looking for a job, so I got in touch with him once this place opened. It was a week since I seen him, he’d brought a friend. I didn’t mind, more security I guess.”

Gavin couldn’t read her as well. Too defensive, too stiff. He didn’t blame her, but unsure of how to go, he chose gentle. “He didn’t seem off to you since then?” She turned on him, narrowing her eyes, before sighing.

“Not more than usual. We only briefly talked once we could, but he did his job well before. Me and Ben are more comfortable with each other than me and that dude was.”

“Did you even know his name?” Nines voice was still flat, but his LED was yellow.

“I don’t. Look- do you really expect a non-deviant to know many people immediately? I just knew he was a good security guy, so I offered a hand. Had I known he’d be the reason I had so much shady  _ shit _ going on my establishment, I would’ve fired him a long time ago.”

Gavin latched onto that, shifting to rest his weight on his hip, next to Nines more. “You didn’t know about anything going on?”

“No. Ben said the guy and the friend would disappear for an hour or so every night and come back with somebody. We both thought they were just hanging out with friends…” Her voice dropped towards the end, and Gavin seen the pain flash across her eyes. “If I had known…” That’s when Gavin stepped in, sighing softly to get her attention.

“You can’t micro-manage everything, even if you had multiples of you. Some things just get away from ya. You got plans for the re-opening?” Switching the topic, wanting to ease her stress- it was things Gavin was used to doing for himself.

“Besides new security, I plan to hold an all-night happy hour on some of our menu items. Not much I can do yet other than promise to do better.”

“You’ll do fine, thank you for answering our questions. I hope tonight turns out great.”

“Uh thanks. Thanks.” The second one came out more genuine, then she straightened, smacking her palm gently against her LED. “Oh shi- I never did apologize to you! I’m the owner, and you became a target and here I am snapping-”

“Hey hey it’s alright! I wasn’t expecting one from someone who’s got no control of others. Seriously.” Gavin held his hands up, then looked over to Nines, feeling eyes on him. Nines reacted like he was caught, the smile Gavin seen for a second shifting to blank as he looked forward. “But anyways, we need to get going. If you have any issues, feel free to call in.”

She nodded, and then Gavin bumped his shoulder against Nines’, nodding to the door. As he turned around, he felt a hand touch his arm again. ‘ _ Touchy. _ ’ They walked out, and Gavin got into the passenger seat, Nines only leaving him when he got into the car. Already starting back with their plan to find out what Nines liked, he heard a chuckle. “You couldn’t wait?”

“Phck no! I wanna know Nines.”

“Well pause for a bit. We should talk about in there.”

“Ugh you’re right,” he did as told, looking up with the phone now in his lap. “So, what did you think?”

“She was telling the truth, though I think it disturbs her how little she knew ‘Luke’.”

“So no connection to Aria, just really bad judgement.”

“Unfortunately so. At least it means that there are no other humans, current company excluded, in danger of getting the mark.”  
  
Gavin sighed, reaching up to place his hand over the cloth covering it. It had come loose a bit, but he didn’t feel the need to tighten it. “Yeah, I can’t fucking wait for tomorrow.” Nines blinked, and then nodded in agreement.  
“Even if they find out we were right, unless Aria confesses or allows an interface, we don’t have a way of removing it.”

“Yeah but, at least like, I’ll be able to relax knowing if some random fucker rips my covering off I won’t get killed by five of ya at once.” Nines huffed, but then the music started playing, Gavin’s phone lighting up.

“I suppose that’s one way to see it.”

The rest of the ride was talking about music. By the time they got back to the precinct, Gavin had a full playlist for the other. Jazz, classical, soft pop, coffeehouse, and he had a couple of Gavin’s songs as well. Gavin grinned, before holding out his phone to Nines as the walked into the main room of their floor. “Why are you holding your phone to me? If you assume I can charge it-”

“Interface. Specifically with the playlist I have open. Save it.” Nines raised his eyebrow, and Gavin noticed Connor approaching them. He did as asked though, hand touching the phone’s surface before his eyes raised.

“You made me a playlist?”

“Call it old fashioned, but I thought you’d appreciate having some easier access to music. Should be a little bit of everything you liked from today.” Gavin put his phone away, looking over to Connor as he stopped beside them. Nines didn’t turn, his LED turning a mix of yellow and blue.

“Hello Detective Reed, Nines… Is something the matter?” Connor’s LED went yellow, and Nines blinked, looking between them.

“Nothing is the matter- that phrase is so problem-some to respond to. We just returned from the club, we attempted to see if there was any further connections, but there was none.” His LED settled back to blue.

“While you two ladies talk, I’m going to the bathroom. Nines, you got this?” Nines nodded, sending a small smile over to Gavin.

“I think I can manage a simple debriefing.” The sarcasm in his tone had Gavin laughing, and he disappeared to the bathroom. He was glad that it was the only ‘android-free’ place in the precinct, given they had no need for it. It allowed him to take off his scarf and the choker. He grabbed some toilet paper and wet it at the sink, patting down his neck. It was too warm, and he wondered if bandages would be better. ‘ _ Police tape, make it a fashion statement. I’m sure they have the old stuff in the storage locker. _ ’

It was a good idea, and Gavin loosely threw on the scarf, thinking either way- bandage or tape- it was getting switched out. He put the choker around his wrist, letting the loose fabric move freely. He moved out, noticing Connor and Nines talking by the lieutenant’s table. He walked quietly, hoping to not alert any of them so they couldn’t talk him out of this. ‘ _ It’s a good idea! _ ’ He made his way to the elevator, then down to the storage, starting to go through the rooms. It took a while, but he found a roll of ‘ _ CAUTION _ ’ ribbon and a roll of black and white safety tape. He went with the ribbon, moving to find an empty room. Finding a small, empty office, Gavin sat down.

Pulling off the scarf, he started unrolling the ribbon. As he was about to put it on, his phone buzzed, and Gavin huffed but pulled it out. Tina was messaging him, of course. - _ Geez Gavin, you pissed off Connor again. Something about ‘never being where you’re supposed to?’ _ \- Gavin laughed, messaging her back. - _ He can fuck off. I went to get something other than this hot af scarf, you’re going to love the irony of this. _ -

- _ Oh I bet bitch. Don’t get in trouble tho. _ \- He scoffed, before a voice behind him made him jump. “Dete-  _ Gavin. _ ” Nines voice was like cold water, Gavin suddenly remembering the mark. He shuffled forwards abruptly, pulling the scarf to hide his neck.

“Shit shit- sorry Nines! Was going to cover it with something else!” He turned, eyeing the other. Other than a yellow LED, glitching with small spots of red speckled in, he seemed fine. ‘ _ Because you two aren’t close. Idiot. He’s a fucking advanced Calvin Klein model, he’s not going to want to be close to you. _ ’ Ignoring the voice in his head, he shoo’d Nines with the hand not covering his neck.

Nines backed off, and stood outside the door. “Just one minute ok!”

“Yes.” The clipped answer hurt, but Gavin ignored it, instead focusing on getting the ribbon right. When he finished, tying a knot in the front, ‘ _ CAUTION _ ’ read across the back of his neck like a pretty warning. Just to make it better, he tied two more words into the knot so they’d hang like loose strings. He walked out, and looked over Nines. He stood stock straight, but when Gavin stopped beside him, he looked over.

“We good?” There was a pause, then Nines smiled to him. Gavin felt his whole being sag in relief.

“We’re good detective. I believe that Connor isn’t however. He’s insisting that you go home until tomorrow instead of ‘trying to work and put others at risk’.” Gavin scoffed, folding up his scarf. He missed the way Nines focused on his neck, looking up to him and seeing eyes back on his own when he did. “ _ Caution _ , really Gavin?”

“It fits! The scarf was too fucking hot, driving me nuts. And now, Connor can’t worry about anyone seeing it, this shit is tight. It won’t slip.”  
“I’d say I’m worried it’s too tight, but you don’t seem the person to mind, given how you kept tightening your scarf earlier.”

Gavin felt heat creep to his face, looking to the side and suddenly walking. He didn’t think anyone caught on. “ _ Yeah! _ Didn’t want it slipping.”

“Mhm, sure.” He caught the sarcasm, rolling his eyes to it despite the fact Nines couldn’t see. Within seconds of walking though, he felt Nines at his side, and their arms brushed slightly. “You know, I can tell when you’re lying Gavin.” It was said so casually that he almost tripped from the way his whole body stuttered.

“Phck  _ off _ toaster- I just like things tight around my neck ok?” Gavin felt like he was going to die before he truly admitted he likes the threat and the follow through of the pressure.

“Does this just apply to clothes?”

“We are  _ not _ having this conversation!” A deep laugh, and Gavin’s bristled form melted. At least Nines didn’t seem freaked out about it.

They rode back up, and he grinned seeing Tina heading for the elevator. “Hey prom queen- look at my wonderful idea!” His voice was loud, walking out with his arms held out. Faintly he heard a  _ whirring _ behind him, but Tina’s gasp had his focus.

“Oh that’s perfect! And of course you had to be extra with it. Gavin ‘gay disaster’ Reed strikes again.”

“Hey, this isn’t a disaster.”

“Says the guy I’ve seen shirtless, wearing black tape and  _ only _ black tape over his nip- Oh hi Nines!” She shrunk back, and Gavin looked to his side, seeing the yellow LED.

“Tape over that area would be painful, wouldn’t it?” There was silence, Gavin slowly turning red, looking to glare at Tina. Then seeing her grin he felt a lump in his throat. _‘Tina shut up, Tina shut up, Tina-_ ’  
“Only when you pull it off, but I don’t think Gavin minds a little pain. Considering his ass literally caught on fire when one of the dancers-”  
“I _really_ don’t want to have this conversation!” Gavin finally snapped, taking his partner’s wrist and tugging it forward. “Phck off Chen!”

He heard laughter, and then a ringtone, recognizing it as Chen’s. Glad for the distraction, he escaped with Nines to their desks, only letting go when they got there. “Alright, time to stop being dipshits. Connor isn’t my boss, I want to get something done. We should have enough to file that-”

“She finished the story. I should be surprised you had the dancer throw you into the pool, clothes and all, but I’m not. She even provided me pictures, I must say, the look is good for you.” Nines pulled away, sitting down at his desk with a cat-like grin. Gavin felt his heart beat in his ears, and nearly tore his phone out of his coat. He sent Tina an angry text, only getting an ‘ _ lmao _ ’ back from her. Cursing his existence, he looked up to see Nines, still with the grin on his face.

“Phck you Nines- stupid fucking grin,” Gavin grumbled, looking to the files on his computer and starting to fill them over. He had to ignore the chuckle across from him.

He got two of the files put in to help the warrant along, before he heard Hank’s voice, deep and annoyed behind him. “You’re  _ still _ fucking here Reed? Can’t you get it through,” suddenly cut off, Gavin grinned, looking up to his partner who was  _ glaring _ at Hank. ‘ _ Jeez what were him and Connor talking about? _ ’ He turned, and caught the look of confusion on the lieutenant’s face. “Are you wearing caution tape around your damn neck?”

“Uh huh. I like it- feels better than a heavy scarf and it won’t budge.” To prove his point, he tugged on it, unable to even get his pinky in on the sides.

“Only  _ you _ would think of something so childish.” Hank grumbled, but then his eyes flicked up. Gavin watched as his shoulders went back and he looked surprised, so he turned to look at his partner, who looked absolutely livid.

“ _ I _ thought it was a rather creative look, one that would bring less questions than just flat out bandages, and one that no one would think as more than a fashion statement.” Gavin heard the defensiveness in his voice, and while part of him was  _ thrilled _ , he was also confused. He didn’t think the other would be this protective of him.

“Hey hey, both of you enough. It’s silly, but I like it Anderson, so fuck off. Now Connor can’t bitch til I get sent home, because I’m not at risk of exposing anyone else.” Gavin turned back to his work, waving his hand and then sending Nines a text. - _ Hey it’s chill, I’m used to this. _ \- He watched the other’s face, the brief expression of a scowl passing over it before it became passive. Nines sat down, and Gavin felt the buzz in his hand. The text came out weird, and Gavin didn’t need an LED to portray how concerned he was.

- _**It’** 01101000 **s** **no** 01100101 **t** **fin** 01101100 **e Gav** 01110000 **in**.- _ Instead of saying anything about it, since the other didn’t seem to realize, he pulled up Hank’s number.

- _ Hey fuckface, say nothing, show nothing. Something’s up with Nines, have Connor look at him. _ -

- _ Why, cause he showed some expression over a shitlord like you? _ \- Gavin rolled his eyes, Nines voice pulling his attention. “Something the matter Gavin?” Gavin felt Hank’s eyes on him, and grinned.

“Teasing the old man, I’ve seen him wear  _ worse _ , don’t worry. Actually, I bet if you look up the office party from five years ago…” He trailed off, feeling his phone buzz. But it worked, Nines eyes widened just a bit, looking interested while LED became a flat yellow.

- _ YOU BITCH. _ -

- _ HANK FUCK OFF FOR A MINUTE AND GET CONNOR. I’m worried you old sack of spoiled potatoes, now could you please act mature while he’s distracted! _ \- Hank growled, and Gavin wondered if this was how the old man felt with his own bullshit. But he heard footsteps stomp off and relaxed, Nines laughter helping with that.  _ ‘Of course I’m weak to this fuck’s laughter.’ _ “Did you find it?”

“Who convinced him to wear that apron?” His laughter didn’t die down, and Gavin melted into the desk a bit.

“He lost the game we were playing. It was a good night.” Gavin looked over, noticing Connor  _ speeding _ up to them. He received a glare, of course, and Hank trailed behind him sheepishly.

“Incoming.” Nines looked over, and Gavin watched his LED glitch again, small bits of red bleeding into yellow, not the smooth chunks of it that would normally show up. Before he could comment further, Nines got up, and grabbed his wrist.

“Detective, I just received word that the female android you spoke with would like to speak with us again.” Gavin blinked, but the other was pulling him up. He didn’t resist, not with the way fingers pressed into his palm and the warmth he felt. “Gavin,” low voice, and he was done for.

“Yeah yeah, grabbing my things.” He grabbed his shit off the table before the other pulled, and he looked to Hank and Connor as they passed.

“Nines! Could you wait a minute-”

“No.” His voice was so  _ flat _ , and Gavin wanted to pull back, but then it was warm as Nines continued. “ _ Gavin _ , come on.”

“Uh huh, coming.” They walked into the elevator, and Nines tried to have the door close on Connor and Hank, but they managed to slip in, Nines’ LED turning red with an unnecessary sigh.

“Nines, please talk to me. I know I overstepped earlier in my… worries… But, I just want to talk.” He let go of Gavin’s wrist, and immediately the detective felt the loss. Arms folded, he now glared at Connor. But they switched to their own messages, so Gavin pulled out his phone, nudging Hank in the side.

- _ See what I mean? _ -

- _ Somewhat. Connor thinks he’s just tired of your shit Reed. So do I. That’s why they’re arguing to begin with, you know. _ -

- _ Fuck you, I’ve been trying to be nice. You know what, I should’ve known you two were going to turn this shit on me. Fuck off. All three of you. _ \- Gavin growled, and Nines looked over to him immediately, phone slipping into his pocket. “Rain check Nines, I think I ate something bad.”

“Not surprising, you’re like a raccoon.” The glare he sent Hank’s way was livid, and Hank simply grinned. But then there was a hand, gentle, on his back, smoothing up to his neck and  _ oh _ .  _ ‘Weak spot how does he know oh phck _ .’

“You sure you’re fine, detective?” Nines voice was low, and Gavin knew he was trying to be concerned without revealing it to their audience.

“I will be. You can handle the girl right? If it’s just something to tell us, it shouldn’t be as heavy as before.”

Nines looked between him and Hank, and the hand  _ squeezed _ , Gavin feeling heat blossom in his face as it felt nice to have a grip there. “I suppose so. I will check in with you what she reveals.”

Connor chipped in there, and Gavin shrunk at the glare his partner sent to the other. “I can go with you! It would be nice to witness a report first hand, all I have is what’s filed, which, thank you Detective Reed for doing so in an orderly fashion.” Gavin knew Connor would’ve said ‘ _ for once _ ’ if Nines wasn’t looking like an actual murder bot.

“Yeah yeah, I’ll be here tomorrow to figure out what’s going on with my neck.” The elevator stopped, and though he hated moving, he did so, pulling away from Nines and walking towards the doors. He knew he looked defensive, shoulders hunched and hands stuffed in his pockets, but it beat looking hurt by Hank and Connor. ‘ _ Fuck them both. _ ’ Pulling out his phone, he messaged Tina, going to his car. - _ Hey if you have time, meet me at this club. _ -

- _ Gavie? _ -

He didn’t respond, quickly heading home and turning all music off. If he was the bad guy, and only that, then he’d deal with it as he always did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Binary code? Binary code.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A trip to the club, some time spent with friends. Then Connor decides to show up. His night couldn't get any better, could it. But they move on, and Gavin is able to confront Nines with his worry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Linked Chapter Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CadGgRYFDhQ  
> False Disposition- it really fits Gavin! Again, big thanks to sunkiller for beta'ing so quickly!

Gavin switched out of his normal attire, removing the caution tape and setting it aside, then taking a shower. A quick shower and he felt a little bit better. ‘ _ You have no right to feel this hurt. _ ’ Gavin groaned, playing the song that suddenly flooded his head from the comment his own mind made. ‘ _ False Disposition- how ironic. _ ’ He pulled on a crop top to match his mood, the bright red of it disturbed by a black ‘x’ over his chest. The caution tape went back on of course, after Gavin made sure to dry the skin there properly. Then he pulled on a pair of tight jeans, finding a studded belt to wrap around his waist. He dug around for some yellow wrist bands to wear, to match the caution tape, but could only find one of Tina’s scrunchies. He threw his choker back where it belonged in his room, and stopped to pet Furball.

“Good kitten, best kitten, you wouldn’t ever hurt me. Except every time I don’t wake up in time to give you snuggles huh?” He bent his head down to rub his nose against the cat’s, checking his bowls and grabbing a treat to put in one. “I’m going to head out again, don’t worry I’ll be back tonight.” Gavin grabbed his keys and slid his ID and keycard out of his wallet, sliding them into his front right pocket. Just in case, he did the same with a switchblade, feeling the cool metal between the fabric of his pocket and boxers. His music switched to ‘ _ This Is Love _ ’, and Gavin laughed, grabbing a fifty and stuffing it in his left pocket. He was singing along as he left, phone in hand.

By the time he was to the club, seeing the familiar lights of the place he probably shouldn’t be at, he was feeling much more relaxed. He parked and walked up, noticing the new security at the door immediately. ‘ _ Good on her _ .’ He went over to the bar, glad to see the place was lively despite everything. No Tina in sight however, he just found an empty seat towards the end, waiting for Ben to make his way down. “Detective?”

“Nope, just Gavin. Officially off duty, figured I’d stop in and support the local business.” Gavin offered a grin to the other, and Ben shook his head with a laugh.

“Of course you did. What would you like, Gavin?” He  _ knew _ why his heart sank when it wasn’t the same tone that Nines’ held, but it didn’t hurt any less.

“Something strong and fruity if you got it.”

Barely two minutes passed before a drink was brought over, red with a pineapple slice in it. It smelled pretty good. “You wanna just keep this fifty for the night?” He handed it over, and Ben nodded, LED spinning yellow once before smiling.

“I’ll leave you at it.” Gavin tilted the drink to him, before turning and sipping it, looking over the dance floor. It wasn’t long ‘til he heard the familiar voice of his friend, and he relaxed, looking over. Tina, still with her uniform pants on, wore a white button up and her belt empty.

“Really-  _ this _ place is where you choose to get hammered?”

“No one expects me to hang out here, so yeah. It’s relaxing and the music isn’t half bad.” He watched her eye the caution tape with a laugh, sitting beside him.

“What you drinking bitch boy?”

“Dunno, want me to order you one? Is your girlfriend coming because I only put in a fifty.” Tina nodded, and they turned back to the bar, the girl waving to the bartender.

“Yeah, Audrey should be showing up soon. Told her you were in a mood- let me guess, Hank and Connor on your ass?” Gavin scoffed, taking a heavy drink. When Ben came back, he blinked.

“More friends Gavin?”

“Yep! And there will be one more- Tina I hope you’re pitching in right?”

“Of course I fucking am, you look like sad hoe and that’s depressing. I’ma get you plastered.” Gavin grinned to that, watching Tina hand the bartender her card. “Keep it on tab, one dollar tip each time. Gavin you really need to get a card.”

“Phck you, I don’t like cards- cash is fine.” Ben laughed as they bickered, interrupting them briefly.

“What would you like Tina?”

“Whatever Gavie got- it looks good.” Nodding, the bartender left to make another drink, and Tina called out a ‘ _ thanks! _ ’ before turning back to Gavin. “So- you and Nines- how  _ is _ it going?” Gavin glared over to her, feeling his chest twist in pain.

“It  _ was _ going til Connor suddenly thought it wasn’t. I guess him and Connor have been fighting, and of course Hank knows before I do about this.”

“It was going? Wait for real, you’re actually chill with that terminator, shark jawed, bullet proof  _ mountain _ ?” Gavin couldn’t help but laugh at the incredulous tone she held, Ben dropping a drink for her between them and another for Gavin. His was only halfway, but he wasn’t complaining.

“Yeah Nines is- really cool. He gives shit as well as he takes, he doesn’t treat me like a child, he doesn’t always try to takeover when I’m speaking to someone- he actually likes my music and backs off when shit bugs me. He’s cool Tina, you should try talking to him.” There was silence, at least from his friend, as he took a long drink. He went to eat the piece of pineapple when she spoke up.

“You like him. You  _ like _ like him- holy  _ shit _ .” Gavin bristled, quickly swallowing the fruit despite himself.

“Phck- not so loud! I mean- yeah. Yeah alright! He’s handsome as  _ phck _ Tina. He’s got these sharp teeth that could rip me apart, he already knows  _ just _ where to press to make me melt. His laughter is so damn nice too, it’s  _ annoying _ how much I like him because like- I can’t just- redeem myself in his or Connor’s eyes for the shit I pulled but he’s. He’s so-  _ damn _ …” Pushing the empty cup away, he took his new one. “Better order five of these Tina…”

Looking over at no response, he grew suspicious of her grin and the way her hand was moving away from her hip. “Who the fuck did you just talk to.”

“Auuuudrey,” she sing-songed, still grinning. “You’re so  _ fucked _ Gavin! Does he even have like, those emotions yet?” Another withering glare, and Tina held a hand up, leaning back.

“Of fucking course he does, I just don’t think for me. I mean- you  _ know _ me. I can barely wrap my head around you and Audrey liking me let alone him. He probably just is doing what he thinks will work best…”

“And it’s working, just too well.” A whine, and Tina laughed at his suffering. He slumped into the counter, feeling air on his back every time someone passed behind him.

“Yeah… But now, Hank and Connor are  _ certain _ he’s not happy in this partnership, and you know how that shit affects me. And I don’t want him to be suddenly, ‘oh right I should absolutely hate him’ because of shit that no one’s bringing up to get resolved to begin with.” Tina’s hand on his back calmed him down somewhat, and foregoing the straw, he chugged this one. Faintly he heard Tina request three more, and he heard Ben’s worried ‘alright’.

“You know them, they probably haven’t even realized you exist after you disappeared for a bit Gavin. Just give them more time, it’s only been a couple days.”

“I know I know. I’m trying- today just. Hit a nerve I guess.” Another  _ pat-pat _ , and then a third voice.

Gavin looked over to see the ST200, her blonde hair chopped off into a tilted bob, a little on the messy side. She had same eyes of Chloe, but where Chloe stayed in blues, Audrey loved greens, even wearing a deep green lipstick and a vine flower crown. “Gavin! Gavin it’s been too long!” She moved over to him, and he pulled away from the bar to accept the hug. Then she moved to Tina’s side, clinging onto her. “So who do I need to fight breaking our raccoon bastard’s heart?”

Gavin let out a deep sigh as Tina fully filled her in, finishing off that drink and chewing on the pineapple. He bristled suddenly, feeling eyes on him, and looked around. He spotted a girl approaching him. It took a second, but he recognized it as the owner. “Sup Kate.” His friends turned towards the incoming lady, and she looked over the three of them.

“Bit surprised to see you back here after- everything.” Her small voice was different from the one he heard earlier, and he couldn’t help but laugh, leaning out of the way to expose his friends.

“Yeah, I don’t hold grudges. If I did, I’d hate half of Detroit by now. Tina, Audrey, meet the owner Kate. She’s alright.” He shrugged, taking the pineapple out of his next drink. Two drinks in and he felt pleasantly warm, glad this was something strong after all. It seemed Kate didn’t expect the introduction, surprise gracing her features.

“Well sup Kate! This place is rocking, me and Audrey might need to plan a date here sometime.”

“Ohhh do you have karaoke.” Gavin began mouthing ‘ _ please say no _ ’, knowing the owner could read his lips. She only laughed, nodding.

“We do! Friday nights. I’m glad to hear there’s no ill will, and uh-” She paused, before taking the empty seat beside Gavin. “Are you going to be a regular here, dete-”

“Gavin, please. Off duty. And yeah sure, it’s calm, and only these dipshits know I come here. Plus, if you have karaoke, I now have to babysit them and keep them from dueting each other every Friday.”

Audrey huffed, indignant, and Gavin would’ve smirked, snarked a comment, but a soft hand was on his arm. He looked over to see Kate, a smile on her face, eyes hopeful, and  _ ‘oh _ ’. Gavin knew he had a problem of being a bit dense, but really, he thought he’d be safe here. “I’ll look forward to seeing you more often then, Gavin.” Gavin laughed softly, an awkward choked noise, and thought of all the options to convey the dilemma, before Ben, thankfully, cut in.

“Kate the man’s  _ gay _ , if anyone’s getting his number it’s me.”

Both girls paused immediately, and Gavin  _ knew _ they were grinning. He was feeling all the warmth- everywhere. Then Tina broke first, laughing out loud and pulling Gavin back with an arm around his neck. “Yep! Gay disaster and so am I!” Audrey chirped in, wrapping her arms around them both.

“And she’s very much taken too, sorry!” Kate turned so blue, and Gavin was glad he was drinking, knowing he’d be dying of embarrassment at this point.

“Sorry Kate!” Kate shook her head, holding her hands up and starting to giggle as well.

“Nonono! I’m sorry! I should’ve paid more attention! But- thanks! For stopping by I need to go-” Gavin could see an excuse when it was one, and nodded simply, wanting to spare the poor lady. LED still intact, he was glad it was mostly blue with a small strip of yellow.

“Stop by anytime if you want to talk!” Tina’s voice called to her retreating form, and Gavin pulled out of the group hug.

The rest of their time was rather uneventful, they drank, talked about Audrey’s work in the hospital, Tina’s latest case, and Gavin’s problematic crush on his new partner. By the time Gavin knew he should stop, Tina and Audrey were  _ very _ touchy feely, much to the chagrin of some fucks nearby. Gavin growled at someone staring too much, and he quickly turned away. “Alright girls, it’s time to bail. You two are one more drink from losing clothing and I’m not fighting anyone tonight to mind their damn eyes.” The girls whined, and Gavin had half a mind to get Tina’s card back. “Thank you Ben. Could you uhhh- call a taxi?”

“Sure thing, need help getting out?” Gavin shook his head, and wrapped an arm around Tina, the wobbliest one of the three.

“Noooo we- we got it.” He flashed the other a grin, and led them outside. The taxi was there in seconds, and in the back of his head he bet Ben had it ready anyways. He helped the girls in, before getting in as well. “Audreyyyy, tell it where to go you’re more competent than me.”

“Hah you bet!” Her giggling was so bright, and Gavin remembered she tried the ‘booze’ option for androids. How wild it was, to know there was alcohol for them already. Soon the car was moving, and Gavin squinted as he vaguely recognized this as the direction to his house.

“Oh yeah, drop me off first!” He hissed, though it lacked any real heat and the girls knew that. Giggling, Tina laid against Gavin, Audrey taking a picture with the officer’s phone. He just accepted it, huffing and relaxing against the seat.

“Yeah we are- goofy bitch boy- we gotta air out the scent of  _ pine _ -ing before it drives us up a  _ tree _ .” Tina laughed loudly, proud of herself, and Gavin flicked her forehead for it. Audrey plopped onto them shortly after, and that’s when Gavin pushed his friend off, laughing at the indignant squeak.

“You guys are so mean to meeee,” he whined, and then the car stopped, and Gavin blinked as the door opened. ‘ _ Already? _ ’ He got out, and let himself nearly fall over as Tina and Audrey pulled him into a hug.

“Night Gavie!”

“Night piney!”

“Night dipshits- have fun- T take it easy you have work tomorrow!” The car started to pull away, but he still caught the ‘ _ so do you bitch! _ ’ coming out the window. Remembering his own car at the club, he groaned at his lack of foresight, and walked into his house. Not really paying attention, he bumped into someone, looking up and dropping his keycard he finally got out.

“Good evening Detective Reed.”  _ Connor _ . Gavin felt his chest roller coaster, believing for a second it was Nines, and then falling seeing the other robocop.

“Uggggh- Connor don’t ruin this good booze in my system I am- going to bed.” Picking up his keycard, he tried to keep his face to just ‘annoyed’ and not ‘disappointed’. He walked past the other, noticeably avoiding brushing into him as he got into the building. But Connor followed, syncing with the elevator.

“I wish to speak to you of Nines’ behavior earlier, since Hank never asked what made you worry and- while I have my own worries, I would like to know the cause for yours.”

That’s right. The weird text message before Hank made him feel like shit. “Also, detective, why did you go drinking to begin with? You are aware of tomorrow being, well, tomorrow?” Gavin waved his hand at the bot, pulling out his phone as Connor was going to follow him anyways. He held out the keycard, waiting for Connor to take it.

“Since you’re following me into my fucking house,  _ creeper _ , might as well get the door. And I got a weird text from Nines. Plus his mood light-”

“LED,” Connor corrected, only smiling to the glare sent his way, probably because it was weak. Still, Connor got the door, and handed Gavin his keycard. Gavin forced it into the pocket, and walked ahead.

“Anyways, it was… Weird. Normally, if it goes red at all, it’s a small quarter of it- and that expands and smooths out, or disappears. But it was flecks of red, in yellow, anytime I looked at it. Or- or- it was blue, but still had  _ specks _ of red in it. And that’s just- that’s not how I’ve seen it on Nines.”

Sitting down on his couch beside Furball, he let the kitten climb into his lap. Connor took another seat after closing the door, and Gavin felt the liquor relax him. It hurt to think about this, but… ‘ _ Nines is more important _ .’ He handed his phone over to Connor. “Don’t go snooping ya fuck or I’ll tell Fowler you came to my god damn house without my permission.”

“Duly noted- wait… This is the text Nines sent?” Gavin nodded, frowning more genuinely. Connor set the phone down, and Gavin let out a ‘ _ there _ ’. “Huh?”

“Your LED. That’s what I mean- I watched the strip of yellow expand and take over. It doesn’t come in in pieces.”

“You’re very observant to our LEDs.” Gavin shrugged, moving the kitten out of the way so he could lay on his stomach.

“Easy to read once you get used to it. Yellow- processing, concern, worry, shock, communication, data transfer, unsettled. Blue, calm, happy, relaxed, easy on the mind basically. Blinking blue- sudden happiness, sudden ‘oh!’, and it blinks twice during stasis if you have an update. And then red…” Gavin went quiet, knowing Connor could figure out the rest.

Connor was quiet, studying Gavin. “Why- How do you know this?” Gavin smirked, head on his arms, feeling claws on his back that started kneading into his crop top.

“You think because I was rude to  _ you _ I’m suddenly rude to everybody. I knew about deviants long before you showed up.”

“And you didn’t report it?”

“Who would believe me dipshit? ‘Oh yeah, Elijah Kamski is dating a deviant. Oh yeah, I have been to a deviant bookclub in my apartment complex. Oh and you know that one bar with the cute girls dancing on the counter in Vocaloid outfits? All fucking deviant  _ weebs’ _ .” Gavin laughed to that, shaking his head.

“Deviants that did as told, despite being deviant, hid for a lot longer than you think. They all had jobs to do, that they did and then when they weren’t needed, they’d skip a stasis or two and hang out.” Connor’s LED was fully yellow now, and then there was a huff.  _ ‘He doesn’t like his view being changed. _ ’

“You should’ve reported it! If you knew, you were willingly breaking the law for- what-  _ years _ ?”

“And what- _kill_ people Connor?” He shot back, watching the LED flick red. “You thought I didn’t know looking the other way was against the law? You thought- ‘oh hey, the jackass that made me get him coffee then didn’t take it obviously would shoot a deviant on sight’.”  
“Gavin you aimed your gun at me! _Three times!_ You shot at me!”

“You were trying to stop Markus!” Gavin realized he was shouting, Furball skittering off to his own room as Gavin leaned up.

“I- what?”

“You said ‘I know a way to stop the deviants’. You were in that evidence room, despite it being  _ bullshit _ , and when I followed up- you said  _ that _ . Did it ever, once, occur to you that yeah, I’m absolutely against unfeeling  _ pricks _ taking over my job, but I wasn’t against the thought of every deviant I knew of being free?” Gavin forced himself to sit up, and the alcohol burned like fire in him now. “If I had just let you go, how would I have known you wouldn’t have shot Markus down? Yes I was going to try and fucking stop you- not everyone gets to be fucking  _ heroes _ Connor but I didn’t want to be the guy who had the choice to step in- and didn’t!”

There was silence, and Gavin got onto his feet. “I need more to drink. You want something?”

“I can’t digest-”

“You can drink certain flavored waters, thirium mixtures, and yes I have some of those flavored waters don’t try me further than you have.” Gavin took it easy into his kitchen, pulling out a glass and then his own bottle of vodka. ' _You shouldn't mix vodka into this shit show._ ' Then he got into his fridge, reaching into the back of the bottom shelf, pulling out simple flavored waters. Pouring Connor a glass, he wasn’t surprised to see the other still sitting, LED red and spinning fast. He sat the glass down, then laid back down, taking off the cap and chugging.

“The binary says ‘help’.” Gavin blinked, looking over and feeling confusion. “The text Nines sent you- the random numbers are a binary code. ‘ _ Help _ ’. His system was definitely glitching when it sent it, even interfacing with the text feels off.” Gavin felt worry twist and suddenly the vodka wanted to resurface.

“Phck- did you get anything from him after I left?”

“No, he simply returned to his desk and refused to talk with me on our link. Actually, earlier in the day he completely severed the link, only allowing me to transmit to him. When I sat down to talk with him, he seemed annoyed, but assured me nothing was wrong other than ‘the fact you and Hank can’t seem to resist pissing Gavin off’.” His voice switched to Nines and Gavin  _ whined _ . It got Connor to tilt his head.

“Don’t fucking mimic his voice you bastard, I’m way too drunk for that.”

“Noted. But I couldn’t get a reason to interface with him. Are you sure this isn’t tampered with?”

“Yeah I’m sure. It fucking worried me… Phck. I’ve known him for a couple days and I’m worried, wonderful. Fucking fantastic.” He drank more, and then the bottle was moved away.

“As much as I would enjoy continuing this conversation, the more you drink the closer you get to puking. After dealing with Hank’s episodes, forgive me if I’m less inclined to deal with the gayer, crop-topped version.”

“Phck you dipshit.”

“No thanks. I will be taking my leave now, and will continue to try and talk to Nines. I…”

There was a long pause, before Connor placed the bottle out of Gavin’s reach. “I will think over what we discussed tonight.” And then the fucker left. Gavin felt tired, angry, and concerned, and the booze was making all of it worse. Setting his phone to wake him up, he decided this was where he’d pass out. He left himself plenty of time to get food and another shower. But then he was out.

The morning was not kind to the detective. Head swimming, Gavin groaned as he rolled over to the sound of an alarm, partially falling off the couch. A soft hiss let him know the cat was  _ somewhere _ around here, and he looked around to make sure he didn’t crush it. But he was up, turning the news on and moving into the kitchen. Taking something to keep the headache from settling it, he drank a cup of water and got out some cereal, pouring milk in it. It was all mundane, stripping out of clothes he slept in, eating, shower, changing. He didn’t, unfortunately, get the blessed memory loss other lucky fuckers had. He remembered telling Connor everything, and it stung.

‘ _ Bastard knew I was drunk and kept pressing, I’m giving him a piece of my mind to let drunk dogs lie! _ ’ He growled to himself, but the last thing to be adjusted was his covering. Looking at the mark in the mirror, he was somewhat relieved, something light in his chest. It seemed to have faded just a bit. ‘ _ Oh fuck, beautiful, wonderful! _ ’ He searched around and found some bandages, and before he put them on, used a sharpie to write on them. He was grinning, making little paw prints on the bandage. Then, in smaller letters so it would all fit- ‘ _ pro-purr-ty of the DPD _ ’. Placing it, the words hid under his chin. He added another layer of pawprinted bandage under it to fully cover the mark, and then walked out to Furball.

A quick pet and double check to make sure he had everything, he was out the door with time to spare. Which was good, because he needed to get his damn  _ car. _ The taxi ride back to the club was filled with pop from his phone,  _ ‘False Disposition _ ’ began playing again, and he sung along, tapping his foot. The taxi ride finished to an Alec Benjamin song, and Gavin walked to his car, unlocking it and immediately syncing his phone to the car. Then he was off to the precinct, calling Tina as he was. It took two attempts, but he got her on the phone.

“Bitch it is too early for you to gloat about your near non-existent hangover.” He laughed softly at the bitchy attitude.

“Fine, then I won’t stop and get you a nice fancy coffee to greet you with.”

“I want triple shot caramel expresso.”

“Of course you do. Anything to eat?”

“No no- Audrey got me on that.” A pause, Gavin grinning to himself. “Gavin don’t you dare-”

“Chen,  _ that _ doesn’t count,” he teased, voice rumbling and enjoying the  _ squeak _ he heard in the distance.

“I’M HANGING UP!”  _ Click _ . Gavin laughed loudly, pulling into the drive-through and ordering the expresso and then a blonde roast caramel cappuccino.

By the time Gavin got to the precinct, he fully drank his, spotting Tina and dropping her cup down. He didn’t see any of the other dipshits, but that was fine. “Fucking Connor,” he started, getting a raised eyebrow from the officer. Despite how Gavin knew she felt, she carried herself with perfect grace. Until she spoke.

“Oh boy what now you rabid fuck, give me that. Thank you.” She chugged the cup, and Gavin got himself some of the coffee from the breakroom.

“He shown up at my fucking apartment.” He heard the other choke, and turned to see a very angry and awake Tina.

“He did fucking  _ what! _ That’s not allowed Gavin- I know you didn’t give  _ him _ your address. Oh I’m going to kick that twink’s ass!”

“Calm down calm down. I mean, you can try to kick his ass I doubt you’d win.”

“Fuck you.”

“But we just talked… Too much on my end, I’m going to chew him out for questioning a drunk.”

“Oh you bet! Where’s that fucking-”

The door opened, and Gavin looked past Chris to see Nines searching around their desks, and Connor following like a lost puppy. Nines’ LED was obviously red, and it made him inhale sharply. “Well, better get this morning started. You know, I could fit in the cupboard…” He looked to the cupboards, getting a laugh out of Chris.

“What, hiding from some tincans now Reed?”

“Phck you dipshit, I’m not  _ hiding _ . Just avoiding, there’s a difference.” The door opened again, and Tina stood up, eyes narrowing.

“Connor you  _ bitch _ ,” Tina started, Connor blinking and peaking out from behind Nines. However, Gavin was focused on the way Nines stared him down, LED going from red, to the glitched blue. He crossed the room, immediately scanning over him Gavin knew, and then a hand raised. Looking to the other occupants, Connor getting chewed out by Tina and Chris watching, he leaned into the hand.

“Heard you didn’t go to see the chick?”

“Turns out the info I had was…” Nines shut up, then tapped the pocket Gavin’s phone was in. Gavin pulled it out as it buzzed. - _**Turns** 01100001 **out** 00100000 **it** 01101100 **was** 01101001 **unimportant** 01100101.- _ The numbers again, but this time Gavin was ready. He pulled up a converter this time and quickly had the numbers in. ‘ _ A lie _ .’ Gavin blinked, then forced himself to smile.  _ ‘Something’s wrong with Nines. _ ’ Looking back to Connor, Gavin grabbed Nines hand, pulling him out the room. They passed Hank as they walked, but Gavin ignored him. He pulled him towards the interrogation rooms.

“Gavin?” Not answering, he pulled him into one of the rooms then finally let go. Turning to face the other, the smile dropped into a frown.

“Nines.  _ Don’t _ lie to me, or else I’ll tell Connor what I think is going on. Did you scan this damn marking.” There was a long pause, and then a buzz, Nines LED turning full red. - _ 01111001\. 01100101. 01110011.- _ Gavin translated it then sighed, and he could feel his heart break. They couldn’t be partners, and Gavin looked to Nines. This guy had  _ just _ started, to fuck up like this- he’d get punished for something he couldn’t control.

“It shouldn’t matter, Gavin. We can still work together, as it’s not negatively affecting my code.”

“Bullshit Nines! I’m not fucking stupid like Connor and Hank would like you to believe!” He snapped, hiding hurt behind anger. ‘ _ Push him away, make him want to leave. _ ’ He grew annoyed at the own self-defensive tactics trying to rear up. “Your LED has been glitched every time around me! You send me messages full of binary codes that let me guess, are your real thoughts behind all that fucked up coding! We have no way to reverse this either, and fucking  _ hell _ if I’m going to be the reason you lose a job you actually enjoy tincan!” Gavin breathed deep, seeing Nines reach out and backing up. He knew his face, his body, had to have betrayed him. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream. “I don’t want to be the reason you leave… I’m going to leave this room. Connor’s friend should be here today, and once we all confirm what we thought, I’m going to ask Fowler for a vacation. Both Connor and you will be infected after all, I’ll just be- in the way. Maybe I can get a longer undercover op or something. But- you need to let me alone… Who knows what it’s doing to you…”

“I’m- I’m sorry Nines,” voice breaking, he pushed out of the room. Or tried to, suddenly finding a hand around his wrist and himself yanked back.

“ _ Gavin _ . This- isn’t affecting me like the others. You are in no danger from me. If I’m not messaging you, then assume what I’m saying is being allowed by the infected coding. This does not affect our partnership, not in a negative way at least. I will admit it has-” Nines paused, and Gavin realized he was trying to find words that would be allowed. “Caused me to reveal more… Than I would have done this early… But- I don’t think it will be a problem with you.” The hand left his wrist, and Gavin went to turn around but it went on his neck and he  _ tensed _ . Nines was holding him by the back of his neck, squeezing  _ just _ right.

“ _ Phck _ ,” he groaned, knowing his eyes were slipping closed. He seen Nines smile as his vision cut out, just melting into the touch. “It’s still not  _ right _ Nines. And I’m not that kind of guy!” It took everything to push away, but he did, quickly opening the door. Knowing Nines was moving towards it, he quickly closed it again, talking from the other side while holding it shut. Nines  _ tried _ to open it, but Gavin knew he wouldn’t break DPD property. “I’m not going to be the guy that’s acts on a code making you do this. Making you be like this. I  _ can’t _ be that guy Nines I-” Gavin paused.  _ ‘Care for you too much. Like you too much. Want this to be right. _ ’ His eyes closed, and he swallowed around the lump in his throat.

“Fucking androids- I don’t want you regretting this. Like everyone else. Now I’m going to let go- if you reach for me again, I’ll  _ screech _ , got it?” There was a soft  _ yes _ on the other side, and Gavin walked away, letting go of the door as the last possible moment and speeding up. He was glad to not hear it open, reaching the main room with shaking hands. Tina and Connor had moved to it, and were currently standing… On chairs. Fowler had his head in his hand, shaking it, and Hank was cheering Connor on. Both of them brandished  _ brooms _ and Gavin’s chest hurt.

“What the  _ PHCK _ is everyone on today?!”  _ ‘You’d normally join in. _ ’ Gavin knew this, he knew this, but his worry for his partner over-weighed it. He marched over, ripping the brooms out of both of their hands. “Phcking children! Connor! Get the fuck down, where is your friend? I want this shit figured out  _ yesterday _ .” He turned on Tina, her grin falling at the glare. “And you- I don’t fucking need protection! Least of all from the DPD’s damn golden boy.” He threw both boomsticks on the ground, and the room was silent as he did so. Tina was the first to climb down, and she reached out for Gavin. ‘ _ Another knife why not _ ,’ he thought as he pulled away. “I’m. Fine,” he grit out, and Tina’s arms dropped.

She gathered the brooms, and Gavin heard Connor get down. Turning on him, his LED was red, and past him he could see Hank looking worried as well. “My friend is waiting downstairs. We should use the gym, and have Chris and Hank there, in case.” Gavin nodded to that, and he ignored the way Nines finally joined them, staying in the hallway.

“Sounds good. Do you need me to grab anything in case?”

“First aid kit.” Another nod, and Gavin searched through his desk, pulling a small one out.

“Always good to have one. Let’s go.”


	6. Authorize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The test goes about as well as planned, but at least something gets confirmed. Gavin decides it's time to make a trip, even if he dreads the cost of asking for help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So to clarify something- the reason Connor is taking part in the test is because: he thinks he's better than any simple coding, he doesn't think his emotions will affect him too negatively, and he doesn't know Nines is also infected. He is very much proven wrong on all three points hah.

He led the way, and wasn’t too surprised to hear Hank would be the first one to follow him. Leaving the main room felt like a hammer hitting a stake into his back. Pulling out his phone, and messaged Fowler. - _ Captain, as soon as we’re finished up here, can I get assigned to a new long-term undercover? Even if it’s out of the city. _ \- Connor didn’t join Hank and him as they got into the elevator, and he was willing to bet he was asking Nines what was up. “Reed.” A hum. “Asshole, at least look up.” Gavin did so, snarling a bit in defense. Apparently it didn’t hide how tired he felt, because Hank only seemed concerned. “What was all that?”

“I’m tired of you fucks goofing around while I am trying to get shit done,  _ Lieutenant _ . I’m walking around as a possible trigger object for whomever sees me, with a coding we have zero fucking clue on how to get rid of, and some power tripping  _ bitch _ holding all the secrets that we can’t even touch yet!  _ Phck! _ ” Gavin went to kick the elevator but thought better of it, stopping halfway before just stomping his foot.

Hank didn’t say anything for a few moments, the elevator dinging, but he pressed the  _ stop _ button, and Gavin couldn’t help but think of  _ NCIS _ . ‘ _ The one place with no cameras and no one knows. _ ’ “There’s more to it than that. Connor told me he went to your place, Nines doesn’t know.”

“Yeah, did he tell you he took advantage of my drunk sorry ass and got me to spill shit I wouldn’t have said sober?”

“He conveniently left out you were drunk. Explains why Tina was so angry.” Gavin rolled his eyes, but crossed his arms over his chest. “Doesn’t explain why you’re so jumpy about this.”

“Does any of this leave the elevator or are you respecting Gibb’s rules?” Hank grinned, looking over to him.

“Gibb’s. Now spill.”

“Nines scanned the code.” There was silence, Hank inhaling deeply being the only noise between them.

“Is that why he’s acting up?” Gavin nodded, gripping his arms. He wished he had a scarf, or exposed skin, or just something to  _ hurt _ with because the pain he felt saying this was too much. His face formed a snarl, and he hoped Hank realized it wasn’t at him.

“Yeah it fucking is. I went down to the storage area to switch the scarf out for the tape, the scarf was too fucking hot and slipping, and- I wouldn’t fuck with it.” Hank raised an eyebrow but Gavin wouldn’t say that, shaking his head. “While I was switching, Tina messaged me and I had it exposed. Nines- snuck up behind me. At first I figured it was fine, we’d only known each other for a couple days, and besides his LED, he said he was fine. I cornered him though this morning, after Connor told me he’d sent ‘help’ in his text by disguising it in binary…  _ Phck _ , by the time today’s done, I won’t be able to show up here anymore.”

Gavin broke- laughing though it was harsh, hiding the fact he was  _ shaking _ from it all. “Nines and Connor will be exposed to coding we don’t know how to get rid of. I’m hoping Fowler takes pity on my sorry ass- I asked him for another undercover. Something out of the city, or in it, I don’t care. As long as it keeps me out of here again, by the time winter hits again, I’ll be a fucking memory.” Suddenly he felt a punch, hard, into his arm, making him yip and glare.

“It  _ won’t _ take that long to get a warrant on Aria, even if I need to throw my weight around to make sure of that. No one will forget you, and you’ll be back to working at your desk and driving everyone nuts with your loud ass in no time.” Hank stood straighter, his glare never leaving, though now, it reminded him of the way Nines would be- overly protective. “You said a lot of shit last night that I was too fucked up to think about Gavin. I should’ve paid  _ attention _ to the detective that I knew idolized me, and instead, I just didn't and neither of us can take that back. But I’ll be damned if you start the same isolation shit I pulled, because you’re a  _ good fucking detective _ Reed. Fowler lost one of us, for a while, he’s not losing another to stupid undercovers.” Hank nearly jammed the button as the doors opened, and Gavin felt too stunned to move.

His head was swimming, he felt drunk, as if he was about to kiss the ground. He felt small yet so damn  _ happy _ hearing the praise, and when Hank turned, needing to stop the doors from closing, he heard a raspy chuckle. “Let’s go Gavin, before Connor calls the damn fire department.” That got him to move, Gavin gathering himself and stepping out. There was nothing else said, but eventually Gavin bumped his shoulder against Hank’s. Like detectives- like  _ friends _ would.

“Thanks old man.”

“Anytime you feral raccoon. Now come on, let me introduce you to Josh.”

They walked into the gym, and a tall, lanky guy was standing there, talking to another officer. “Oh well, no, I don’t suppose it’s much of a problem to learn that language for- oh hello Hank!” He greeted them as they walked up, and the officer quickly ducked out. Hank nodded, sitting on the bench.

“Josh- meet Gavin, Gavin meet Josh. Try to keep the introduction short, we don’t want you two actually knowing each other yet.” Gavin laughed at that, holding his hand out. Josh took it, shaking it briskly and it reminded Gavin of a teacher’s handshake.

“You were uh, with Jericho right?”

“Oh you watched the revolution?”

“When I could.” Between hiding the fucks in his apartment and having to forcibly puke on some fuck’s shoes in the precinct, it had been a busy night.

This seemed to be good enough for Josh though, a soft smile coming to the guy’s face, and he couldn’t help but think ‘ _ cute _ ’ for him. ‘ _ Not my type though. _ ’ He waited by Hank, and eventually Connor joined them, Gavin going stiff. Nines was behind him, and Connor looked sheepish. Thankfully Hank spoke up first, hand on his shoulder as if he would jump to run. ‘ _ Which, fair… _ ’ Gavin looked away from the two. “Connor, what’s Nines doing here?”

“He insisted on being down here in case I needed restrained due to a negative reaction.” Gavin watched Hank’s reactions, seeing the way his eyes narrowed.

“I bet he did, and that’s the  _ only _ reason, right kid?” Gavin wanted to chuckle, relaxing a bit with Hank taking so much of the attention.

“Mostly.” It was as truthful an answer as he was going to get, and Gavin stepped in.

“Well, let’s get this over with,” Gavin pulled off his belt and coat, shoving it behind the bench in case. Connor walked over to Josh, and Gavin faintly heard them conversing, confirming that Josh knew what was going on. Gavin pulled at the bandages, unhooking them and letting them lay on the bench. Hank looked over to him, and his voice dropped, taking advantage of the fact Nines seemed to stay away.

“You sure you’re good with this? I could fake a message from Fowler needing Nines.” Gavin shook his head. ‘ _ I’m so tired, _ ’ he thought, sighing heavily

“Connor needs to be put at ease, plus- as it’s been pointed out, Nines isn’t trying to hurt me yet. I just gotta survive today and then I’ll be fucking gone.” Hank frowned, Gavin could see it, but he ignored it. Walking over to the two, he cleared his throat.

“When you two are ready, the mark is exposed.” Connor nodded, closing his eyes.

“Josh you first. Just scan Detective Reed like you would with anyone you meet.” Josh nodded, and looked over. Gavin could see his LED glitch, specks of yellow, and heard Hank’s ‘ _ no shit _ ’ behind him. But nothing happened, Josh’s eyebrows furrowing.

“I’ve gotten new prompts, they’re glitching out, but it’s just ‘learn more about the detective’. Nothing too dangerous, though it is, rather annoyingly bugging me to ask.” Gavin cut in, face serious.

“Don’t. Trust me, you seem like a nice guy.” Josh nodded, then moved away. Next was Connor, and Gavin took a step back, face tired. ‘ _ At least you know this won’t even be a fight. _ ’ “Alright Connor, your turn.”

Connor’s LED was already yellow, but he turned towards Gavin. Slowly, everyone feeling the tension as his eyes opened. Already hovering his neck, Gavin watched his LED, knowing the moment the scan hit him. His LED glitched to flat red, not spinning the color through, just a harsh jarring. Connor went stock still, and Gavin could  _ hear _ the whirring. “ _ Phck. _ ” He stepped back a couple steps, hand waving at Hank.

“Connor?” The lieutenant’s voice was cautious but closer. Gavin kept backing up slowly, then his eyes snapped up. Sadness, anger, both mixing on the guy’s face, in his eyes, and Gavin would’ve been impressed if he wasn’t fucking  _ terrified _ . He gulped, but then Connor leapt for him. He went into fight mode, just barely dodging, and quickly eyed the door. He heard Connor’s voice, flat like it was before the revolution, and Gavin felt ice in his veins. ‘ _ You deserve this remember- just because he heard your side doesn’t mean he’s fully accepted it. _ ’

“ _ Run detective. _ ” It sounded painful for the other to say, and Gavin nodded, doing just that. He ran for the door, but then Connor beat him, and Gavin felt a foot to his back. Rather than walking out, he was launched, hitting the wall and feeling pain shooting through his body. He stood though, seeing Connor advance. Waiting again, Gavin kicked his foot out the minute Connor lifted one of his. Knocking the android onto his ass, he got up, running down the halls while Connor recovered. Vaguely he heard a shout suddenly get cut off. He decided against the elevator, running up the stairs and ducking back the hallway were the cells were. Grinning, he brushed past the poor officer who was the guard. He snagged a key for one of the old fashioned cells, that couldn’t be interfaced with, and running past Aria, he locked himself into one. Finally breathing, he looked across from him to see the bitch, pink eyes grinning to herself.

“Oh joy, the detective is in trouble? Took long enough for that to work.”

Gavin groaned. ‘ _ Just my luck. _ ’ He sat down on the bed, pulling out his phone to message Hank. - _ Well I locked myself in a cell. Across from Aria. I have the key though. _ \- He waited, and waited, minutes ticking by and causing worry to lump in his throat. Almost half an hour passed. It was eventually broken by yelling down the hallway, and Gavin quickly searched for something to cover the mark. All he had was his shirt and his hand, so he held his hand over the mark. The brief moment the door opened let Gavin hear distinctions: Fowler, Anderson, Josh, and the voice of  _ Markus _ of all people. He couldn’t hear snippets of the conversation before the door closed, but he could hear the panicked ‘ _ oh fuck _ ’ of the guard as someone was let back. Even footsteps walked back, and Gavin swallowed, preparing for Connor to be there, terrifying and waiting.

Of course it had to be worse. “Hello Gavin. Rather smart of you to lock yourself down here, Hank informed me of your choice when he could.” Nines stood there, a proud grin on his face, despite the  _ spray _ of blue blood along his torso and hands. Gavin got up, worry replacing the vague pain he was feeling.

“Nines are you injured?” It was the first question he had to ask, getting a small laugh, though it was nothing like the ones that made him melt.

“Of course not, Connor doesn’t stand a chance of hurting me without outside help.” That made Gavin’s heart sink, hand falling as he approached the bars.

“Nines, what did you  _ do. _ ” Gavin’s voice dropped, his whole body sagged, and he could see the effect it had on his partner. His grin left and his head tilted.

“Disabled Connor’s ability to chase after you. Simply, I protected you Gavin. It’s fine, Connor was escorted to an emergency room.” Gavin felt his phone buzz, and looked down to see so many zeroes and ones.  **“I couldn’t help him.”** The translated text made his eyes close.

“Nines, please do me a favor, and go get cleaned up. I need to make a very private call, not in earshot of anyone.” Nines huffed, stepping towards the gates. His hand, covered in blue, held out.

“Do me one?”  _ Buzz. -Just for a minute. _ \- Gavin sighed, but walked over, phone in his back pocket and he took Nines hand in both of his.

“You’re a fucking mess Nines… But I will right this, no matter the cost ok?” He promised, feeling something rip into him.  _ ‘To protect me. Is that his amplified feelings or his professionalism. _ ’ He hated not knowing.

“I don’t like how that was phrased, but my minute is up. I will go get cleaned up, and inform Hank of your need to make a call. Connor is removed from the building, so it should be safe. It  _ better _ be safe.” Gavin nodded, and let go, watching the other walk away. He waited til Hank came in to fully relax, Aria saying nothing.

“Well ain’t this a fucking mess,” Hank began, and got a pitiful ‘ _ hah _ ’ for the sentence. Hank brought his things in, passing them through the bars.

“Connor alright?”

“He will be. Him and Nines fighting- I’m suddenly very, very glad the Jericho crew got him to deviate because that was fear inducing.” Putting on the bandages, he passed the key back finally. Hank unlocked it, and Gavin walked out, his feet feeling heavy. “Nines said you needed to make a call?”

“Yeah… Hey Hank… Thanks for earlier? Really, I had a feeling something- bad would happen. My luck, ya know. But thanks for trying to keep my hopes up.”

“Why you talking like you’ve given up Reed?” The pure concern in his tone had shocked the detective, but he smiled despite it. ' _You've worried everyone._ '

“Not giving up old man, just accepting the cost of my own stupidity.” Gavin walked out, noticing Fowler there. He said nothing, of course, eyes worried as he eyed Hank and him walking out.

“Use the evidence room. I’ll keep Nines busy while you do.”

“Won’t need to. Fowler!” Gavin called out, stopping and turning to him.

“Reed.”

“Need to make a run somewhere, especially after all- this. Can I get a couple hours?” Fowler nodded, a sigh leaving him that Gavin related to.

“That would be best for everyone Reed. I’ll have Hank and Nines work on the warrant.” Gavin nodded, then grinned to Hank, wanting to at least ease someone’s worries.

“I’ll be back old man, don’t get used to the peace and quiet. Hear from you soon Captain!” He moved quick, knowing he needed to get out before Nines tracked him down. To his car, he turned off his phone completely, getting in and relying on memory. He hated the silent drive, when everything in his head was so busy. The long drive felt twice as much so, and Gavin nearly threw himself out the door when he arrived at the house. Looking to it, he sighed. It was all too modern, sleek and elegant, and lonely as fuck feeling. But there were ten cars parked along the side and a couple bikes, and Gavin knew what awaited him. He walked up to the door, knocking briskly on it. It opened within seconds, blonde hair and blue eyes greeting him.

The girl had an undercut, choppy blonde curls on top, and large hoop-like earrings. Her clothes looked like something from his childhood, an off-the-shoulder ‘Panic!’ top and torn up jeans. “Hello? Who are you?” Her voice was definitely edited, the normal ST200 tone replaced with something higher pitched, and  _ preppy _ .

“Gavin Reed. Tell Chloe or Eli I’m here.” A brief second, and her eyes widened a bit.

“Alright  _ shortie _ , come on in. Eli’s in his study.” Gavin walked in, ignoring the jab and taking off his shoes. The door closed as he sighed. Instantly he remembered why he hated coming here.  _ ‘23 pairs of shoes. Fucking hell. _ ’ He recognized none of them as Chloe’s fashionable heels Eli bought her, or Eli’s own shoes, and was glad his were so scuffy compared to the rest.

Walking through the large house, he eased a bit. Every single model around him was an ST200, he knew that, but none of them looked like Chloe. Many had changed their hair color, Gavin spotting a couple wild ones, and some even had different eye colors. There was a couple with LEDs, but mostly, everyone was at ease, talking and working with each other. It was a vast improvement since the last time he was here. A couple of girls looked over, and one whistled, but Gavin sped up. Despite how different they looked, Gavin would never, ever, date an ST200. He eventually got to the study, Elijah not even looking up til the door closed behind him.  _ ‘Soundproofed, I don’t blame him.’ _

“Bout time I saw your ugly fucking mug.” Gavin laughed, but there wasn’t much energy behind it. And of course that got Eli to look up, eyebrow raising. “The fuck? No come backs? Please don’t tell me you’re losing your touch.” Gavin sat on an empty chair, pulling it closer to where Eli was working.

“It’s been… A very long fucking day. What kinda nerd shit you up to now?” Gavin looked to what his brother was working on. It seemed like a thick hair clip, but Gavin knew better.

“A chip to allow androids without the feature to change their hair color at will to do so when it’s placed on. Gavin holy shit- I’m getting paid again because Cyberlife can’t handle the influx of shit people want made. So many scientists fucked off and that’s beautiful.”

“Don’t sound so damn proud of yourself.” Gavin seen the grin Eli had, and let the silence envelop them as he watched the other work.

“So why  _ are _ you here? I thought you were trying to distance yourself from me so  _ you-know-who _ wouldn’t start his shit with you again?” Gavin flinched, feeling his hands twitch.

“Dad can suck my dick, you’re my brother, it’s not like I’m coming to you for-”

“ _ Gavin _ .” Right. ‘ _ We can’t talk about dad or else it’s fighting. _ ’ He bit his cheek, but then swallowed his pride down.

“I am here to ask for help.” It was so quiet, and Gavin was worried that Eli didn’t hear him. But the tool he was working with was placed down, and Eli regarded him with the ‘ _ what now _ ’ look. Years of getting into trouble as a kid surfaced, and he stomped them down.  _ ‘We haven’t talked in years, you’re literally a detective, he won’t get mad- _ ’. He cut the thoughts off as the door opened, shutting quickly with a soft, delicate sigh. 

“Holy  _ fuck _ .” And immediately Gavin snorted, eyes widening as Chloe cursed so easily, still sounding graceful. She crossed the room, and Gavin felt arms wrap around him from behind. “Smol bastard man! Little ‘uwu’ bean!”

“Chloe I hate that out of all the lingo you could’ve picked up to torture me with, you chose early tumblr years.”

“I know. What brings you around! It’s been so long since we seen each other! Oh- roughly three months ago! Almost four! How rude you are to deprive me of my perfect victim- Eli’s become immune.”

“She’s a curse Gavin.”

“You married her Eli.” A deep sigh, and Gavin felt Chloe leave his back. When she joined Elijah’s side, Gavin was so happy to see some normalcy. She wore a deep blue dress, the same color she adored, this one pinched at the waist with white lined frills at the bottom, and a blue rose clip on one shoulder.

“So yeah, what do you want Gav?” The conversation switched back, and Gavin scratched at the side of his neck.  _ ‘Now or never. _ ’ He explained to Elijah his case, the QR code, Connor and RK900, trying to leave it as straightforward and emotionless. “Wait wait- you’re assigned to work with the prototype not even  _ I _ got to see, and the first thing you do is infect it with a visual virus?”

“Visual virus?” Elijah stood up, grinning like a cat now.

“Visual virus! It’s not common, yet, thankfully, because it’s extremely hard to transfer. But I’ve encountered one case of it- someone posted a meme on a message board and all the androids reading the message board instantly patched it through. It was harmless, thankfully, only making them subscribe to the guy’s video channel- but- I’ve been so intrigued by these viruses as they pop up.”

Chloe didn’t seem too excited. “I should leave the room then?”

“ _ Please. _ ” Gavin’s voice suddenly begged, and both of them stopped.

“Gav?” Chloe’s voice was kind but prodding, and he knew he slipped up.

“I just- don’t want anyone else hurt. This has affected a lot of people Eli, because of  _ me. _ I just want to fix this.” He saw them share a look, but thankfully said nothing.

“Alright, Chloe- ask one of the girls if they’d be willing to be an experiment. Paid of course.” Chloe nodded, and went to leave. Before she did, she leaned down, kissing Gavin’s cheek and ruffling his hair.

“We’ll fix this, precious sunflower child.”

“Make it stop.” Gavin was definitely referring to the terms, hanging his head. She left with a laugh, and then there was silence. Him and Eli.

“Let’s get to work jackass.”

The next couple hours weren’t fun. Gavin felt like he was in an examination room made to embarrass him as Elijah documented everything he could. When one of the Chloe’s who volunteered came in, they both went down to one of Elijah’s personal labs. Hours passed by, and not a minute was spent without Elijah trying to prod further. Thankfully, when he was finally allowed to get re-dressed, he managed to not give away any of the more concerning details. Like Connor wanting to kill him, his crush on Nines, Nines wanting to protect him to the point of ripping Connor’s leg off- none of that.

“You know, I could use a security detail here soon,” and here it came. The bargaining. Gavin loved Elijah, he did, but the man never did things for free. Everything had a price, and what Elijah wouldn’t get in knowledge, he’d get in work.

“How many of us would you need?”

“I think I can ask Fowler for you and your partner. You’d have to dress in suits and maintain an air of dignity- it’s a charity dinner for a new apartment complex I’m attending.”

“Android catered.”

“Of course.”

“How many of Chloe’s gals are you moving into it?” Gavin grinned, seeing Elijah pause then sigh. He was always doing these things so he could have his house back. “Hopefully all? Gavin please, this needs to go perfectly and look what I’m doing for you!”

Gavin laughed at that, messing up the other’s hair and enjoying the huff it got. “Alright alright, call Fowler once all this is done, I’ll be available for it. You know, I don’t think he’s pieced together we know each other.”

“Hah no, having a secret detective brother is so  _ sweet _ . If I wasn’t famous I could totally namedrop you.”

“Harr harr. But yeah, is that all?”

“You know me too well. I want to see Nines. In person. I can come by the DPD and drop off the antivirus, or you can bring him here when you come to get it.” Gavin groaned, shaking his head. 

“Just drop by. Say you overheard about the case from one of the ladies.” Eli nodded, and Gavin turned to the girl that it was being tested on. She seemed relaxed, being forced into stasis a while ago. “Tell her thanks for helping though.” Eli nodded, and Gavin yawned.

“Alright, I’m gonna head out. I didn’t tell anyone where I was going and Fowler only gave me a few hours. I have no GPS on me so hah, neither of the robocops could follow me.”

“Smart. Please call fucker, I want to pick on somebody. Rich people are boring.”

“I will. And you have my number too!” Eli stuck his tongue out, and mark covered up, Gavin let himself out. He passed Chloe on the way, talking to a group of girls, and smiled. When Chloe first began adopting all the homeless and jobless ST200’s, it was chaos. A bunch of deviants hiding in a house as ‘perfect working ladies’. Then the revolution happened and Gavin remembered the next week, getting a call of Eli crying about there being  _ 54 _ ST200’s in his house.

He walked up to Chloe, hugging her from the side. “I’m heading out Chlo. Make sure to torture Elijah with some vines.”

“Can I get my pizza,” and she distorted her voice, making Gavin  _ wheeze _ in a choked laugh. “ _ BONELESS? _ ”

“I fucking love you you superb girl.” She ruffled his hair, laughing as well.

“Love you too, idiot. Get going before you get in trouble.” With a ‘ _ yeah yeah _ ’ Gavin actually went for the door. Getting in his car, he felt relief. ‘ _ I will fix this Nines. I will. _ ’ He was glad the price was just work this time, and not something like a family gathering. He felt anxiety melt off of him as he started driving back to the DPD. Halfway through he turned his phone back on, and winced as it flooded with messages. Most of them were from Nines, unsurprisingly, but there was a few from Connor and Hank.

Of course he went through Nines’ first. Each text with the binary code in it made his chest tighten, and he almost missed a couple red lights. This was a great time for traffic.  _ -Detective? Where have you gone?- -Gavin, I was informed you left?-  _ **_“Are you mad?_ ** _ ” -Gavin, no one’s heard from you in a while.-  _ **_“Answer.”_ ** _ -Gavin. Where are you.-  _ **_“Gavin.”_ ** _ -I’m heading towards your place, Fowler didn’t approve but I don’t think he wanted to try and stop me either.- -Are you ok?-  _ **_“Gavin?_ ** _ ” -Please answer me.- _ And then there was nothing, Gavin feeling guilt rise up. It had been silent for an hour. He checked Hank’s messages, just confirming Connor was alright and Hank expressing his own worry. His last one hit like a truck.

- _ Gavin. Nines is going nuts, pacing around the office. I know you were stressed out by this, but we will find a solution kid. Come on back alright? _ -

It made him pause, throat catching. ‘ _ Did I sound that upset that they think… _ ’ Quickly, he replied to Hank, hating the fact everyone was worried. - _ Come on, I turn off my phone so robocops can’t track me and you guys think I’ve fallen off the Earth. Undercover is my specialty, you guys got to remember that. But uh, thanks for worrying. I’m glad Connor’s good, and tell Nines to stop freaking the office out.- _ He noticed the pick up in pace. As he neared the precinct, his phone buzzed, and it was all binary.  **“You alright?”** Gavin smiled, parking before replying.

- _ Yes I’m fine. Come on out here.- _ He got out, locking up his car as he did so.

He didn’t even make it in the building before seeing Nines, waiting for him beside the receptionist. He walked in, and Nines’ LED went yellow, red glitching into it. “Where were you?”

“Taking care of things. You really blew up my phone tincan- rule one of dropping off the face of the planet- turn off phones.” He chided, smiling the whole time. He knew it was just the code causing Nines to worry, and it hurt. It all fucking  _ hurt _ . But he could play along, if it meant Nines was fine and everything would go back to normal. ‘ _ Another point to why you shouldn’t have partners! _ ’

“That answer is… Lacking. But if you went through the trouble of covering your tracks, I suppose you don’t want to talk about it.”

“Nope. Come on, let’s see if cappy-tain has any more cases for us. Maybe we’ll get lucky and the warrant came in!”


	7. Override

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is why this is rated M.  
> After all that's happened, Gavin and Nines work with Hank while Connor takes a break. It's good experience, and when Nines messages Gavin during his time off, things get heated- for what Gavin is sure to be the last time.
> 
> And then he gets a call from Eli. It's shaping up to be a great day.

Turns out, Fowler had nothing for them. Connor was ordered to take a week off, which he told Hank who told Gavin and Nines, that he was going to spend it with the Jericho crew. Gavin relaxed a bit, Nines seeming to be happy about this as well. But Fowler had them helping Hank in the mean time. It was alright, he was learning a lot about android crimes, and Gavin was honestly grateful for the experience. Even if it was tense and awkward, Nines always hovering near him. 

The fourth day came and went, Gavin groaning as they all got out of Hank’s car. His neck accessory this day with white ribbon, tied in a neat bow in front. Nines walked behind him, hand placing on his back. He was getting used to the coding’s need to make him touch, and honestly, he soaked it up, knowing Nines would fuck off once all this was fixed. “Can’t wait to clock out and head home. You actually chase these fucks?”

“Not usually,” Hank replied, grinning to the duo. “Connor does and I drive.”

“Rude Hank! I realize my stamina is enough to make you jealous but now I need a shower you fuck.” Gavin had to admit- a couple days spent with the lieutenant, and they were actually  _ peaceful _ with each other.

“Gavin, may I keep you for a moment?” Gavin blinked, then nodded, looking to Hank and smiling. He lingered for a second anyways, and Gavin was thankful, but he left eventually when Nines looked over.

“What’s up tincan.”

“It’s come to my understanding that Connor was at your house, correct?” Gavin blinked, confusion evident on his face. ‘ _ Where did this come from? _ ’

“Uh yeah, not exactly invited but, it’s whatever. What of it?” Gavin felt the other take a step forward, and while instinct yelled at him to take one back, he simply folded his arms across his chest.

“I don’t think it’s quite fair he’s been over and I, your partner, haven’t.” Gavin knew where this was going, but it didn’t stop his eyes from widening.

“Nines, you really think with you being affected-”

“ _ Gavin. _ ” His voice dropped to that warm, affectionate tone, and then a hand held Gavin’s chin, tilting his head up. “I assure you, if this coding was a threat to  _ you _ , we wouldn’t be having this conversation.” Gavin shivered, but pulled away.

“Nines I can’t- the coding is making you want shit- literally. You can do better than me and- please just…” Gavin paused, shoulders slumping. He hated the hurt, the knowing that this was all a memory waiting to be ignored and erased. “Please just stop…” He knew he sounded broken, and the smaller, still gentle ‘ _ Gavin _ ’ behind him put the nail in the coffin. Gavin didn’t care if he was running. He wanted to clock out, go home, and forget.

When he came back out, several minutes later, Nines wasn’t there. He felt relief and pain, and focused on the former emotion. Heading to his car, he drove quickly, not wanting to stay behind. Only when he saw his apartment building did he calm somewhat, pulling in to park. The walk up and into his apartment was uneventful, Gavin saying a greeting to one of his neighbors as they passed each other, and petting Furball before flopping onto the couch. It had been a long time since he actually clocked out when he was supposed to, and he remembered why. His nights were absolutely boring.

After Furball got tired out from playing, and the news ran while Gavin ate, there was nothing left to do but shower and sleep. Thoughts also lingered of a long bath, with a bath fizzie, which sounded so pleasant. Clothes abandoned in his living room, he went into the bathroom, wiping out the tub and letting it fill. He searched through cupboards to find his bath stuff, and pulled out pomegranate and cherry scented bath fizzies, along with matching soaps and lotions. ‘ _ A night of at-home spa? Sure. _ ’ He set his phone on the toilet lid in case it rang, and then dropped the fizzie in. The water bloomed a deep red-ish purple, and the scent filled the room. Sinking into the hot water, he hissed, but eventually relaxed back.

By the time the tub was full, Gavin lathered his hair with soap, rinsed it, and now was letting the conditioner soak in. His mind was blank, filled with scent and the warmth of the water around him. Of course, a buzz ruined it, and he looked over.  _ ‘Nines _ . _ ’ _ Suddenly, the thought of the other coming over like Connor had sparked an image in his mind. ‘ _ What would he do seeing me like this? Phck, I bet he’d enjoy it. Seeing me do something so soft. _ ’ He wiped his hand off on his towel, opening his phone up.

- _ Sorry for my sudden disappearance Gavin. I felt my absence would be best. Since I am finding myself at a complete lack of adequate company and Connor has requested I avoid him and his friends, I was hoping you didn’t mind me talking to you tonight. _ -

Gavin groaned, but bit his lip. In text form, Nines had more control. His binary glitching would give him away. So it wasn’t all  _ too _ bad to respond right? - _ I don’t mind. I’m just chilling.- _ He kept rewriting the sentence, now leaning on the edge of the tub.

- _ Hah, I didn’t know you had the capabilities. What does relaxing mean for you?- _ Gavin rolled his eyes, propping the towel so his skin wouldn’t meet the toilet.

_ -Soaking in a tub of pomegranate and cherry bath water. Got something to say? _ \- There was a long pause, before a glitched mess came back to. Despite translating, both replies made his head spin.

- _ Oh so you’re messaging me while undressed?-  _ **_“Without me?”_ ** How was Gavin supposed to reply to either of those! He wanted to sink into the water further.

- _ I could stop? _ -

- _ I’m curious, is the water colored? _ \- Gavin knew it was a bad idea, but tucking a leg in, he palmed the water, taking a photo of the tub with only his hand and the tip of his knee exposed. And he sent it to the other.

There was _minutes_ before the reply came back, Gavin nearly sinking his face under to see if he could scald away the embarrassed flush to it. But it did come back, and Gavin nearly choked, as three replies came back, each with a binary in it. - _Of course it’s red.-_ ** _“Very pretty.”_** _-I could fit in there couldn’t I?-_ ** _“Would you mind?”_** _-Didn’t take you as a bath person though.-_ ** _“Does the water roll red off of you?”_**

Gavin knew the pauses were his system glitching, but he kept it up. - _ You probably could fit, and yeah, I rarely take a bath. Only when I really need to let go. And yes, it’s red-tinted water.- _ He put the phone down, rinsing his hair out and then drying his hands again. He settled into the tub, holding onto his phone as he just laid there. When it buzzed, he opened the message instantly. And regretted it, as there was a picture of Nines, in nothing but boxers, sitting in small bedroom on a bed that was prim and proper. He was looking in a mirror, a smirk on his face, and Gavin could see the sleek dark blues and blacks of the other’s room. 

- _ Only fair to return the photo. I’d love to come over still. _ \- Gavin quickly put down the phone.

Just seeing Nines like that, the definition in his arms and chest, the way his chin was tilted up, the lines of muscle, the jut of his hips- Gavin’s mind wandered. He heard another buzz, but suddenly a new problem surfaced, heat focusing down between his legs.  _ ‘Nines won’t know. _ ’ Another buzz, and Gavin groaned, looking over.

_ ‘I’m done for. _ ’ Another photo, closer up, with Nines’ arms crossed over his chest. - _ Gavin, you still there?- -What’re you up to?-  _ **_“You ok?”_ ** Fumbling with his phone, he quickly replied. 

- _ Just was rinsing my hair. I’m fine. Hey give me like, five minutes?- _ He didn’t wait for a reply, putting his phone down and quickly letting the tub drain. He stood up, closing the shower curtain and turning on the shower, looking down to see himself standing at half attention. His eyes closed, and he pictured Nines’ hand instead of his own. Nines pressed against his back, his name coming out of that sharp toothed grin, and moved his hand faster. He couldn’t help but think of kisses against his neck, Nines free hand coming up to grip just where it would cut off.

Gavin came within four minutes, panting softly. He balled up his fist, hitting the tile in frustration. It had been a long time since he jerked off to someone’s name on his lips. And of course it had to be Nines. Rinsing himself of everything, he did feel much more relaxed at least. He got out, grabbing a new towel and starting to dry himself. Getting to where he wouldn’t drip everywhere, he wrapped it around his waist and used the towel under his phone on the floor. Of course there were two new messages, and he went bright red at them. - _ Just five minutes?- -Feel better?- _

‘ _ Did he know? _ ’ Gavin shook the thought away, instead focusing on getting to his bedroom to get dressed. He simply threw on some jogging pants and a t-shirt, wrapping his neck in bandages again. Settling on the couch, he could feel his body slump. - _ Yes I feel better. _ \- He held the phone away, taking a selfie of him laying down. Wet hair pushed into place and a loopy grin.

_ -Nice smile.-  _ **_“So cute.”_ ** Gavin groaned at being called cute, but paused. Part of him was hopeful, realizing the binary had been engaging him all night too. He crushed that hope of course, reminding himself that Nines’ could be getting more fucked up from the code. He felt tired, so much more so.

- _ Thanks tincan. I’m going to sleep, see you at work.- _

_ -Good night Gavin.- _

The next morning came around to an annoying ringtone from some game they both liked, ‘ _ Megalovania _ ’. Reaching over, he eyed the time as an hour before he was due into work. “Fucker do you know what time-”

“Got it!” Elijah’s voice was wide awake and excited. Gavin paused, sitting up a bit.

“Got it,” he questioned, a smile starting to form. Furball hopped onto the coffee table, and Gavin reached over to pet her. “Got what?”

“The antivirus you buffering moron- I’ll be dropping by the DPD bright and early, Chloe’s making breakfast now and I’m getting something out to wear.” Gavin got up, quickly heading to change. “It should work against other QR Codes as well, though for retail working androids, it will require manual overrides. But minor details you know?”

“Love you, you beautiful son of a bitch.”

“Love you too. Dress in something cute, I wanna embarrass you.” Gavin rolled his eyes, then grinned.

“I’ll wear my prettiest ribbon.” He hung up after that, and pulled on a plain dark red v-neck under his jacket.

True to his word, he searched for a thirium blue ribbon, a gift from a girl he met during the revolution. Putting his plain bandages on first, since the ribbon was thin, he worked on a nice bow. It was big and loopy, but the extra fabric still laid over his shoulder. He grinned at it, and then put his boots on. Double checking he had everything, he filled Furball’s bowls and gave him a kiss. “Be good, I’ll stop by the store and get some catnip for you.” With that, he left the house, nearly bouncing as he got down to the main floor.

One of his neighbors, their LED blue, greeted him as he walked across the small lobby room. “Morning Mr. Reed! You seem cheerful.”

“Got some good news. You heading out already?”

“Yep! Got a job in post, heading out now to my first day of it.” Gavin smiled, patting the other on the shoulder.

“Good for ya fucker. I hope your first day goes well, stay outta trouble!” They nodded, and Gavin walked out to his car. It was a quick drive to the DPD, Gavin playing mostly EDM remixes, nothing he wanted to focus on but vaguely songs he liked. Traffic hadn’t fully started yet for him, and when he got to the DPD, shifts hadn’t even changed yet.

He clocked in anyways, heading to the breakroom to grab a coffee. “Detective Reed?” He didn’t recognize the voice, so he turned, seeing one of the officers he met the day they arrested Aria. No LED didn’t bother Gavin as much, seeing the way his eyebrows furrowed.

“Listen listen, if you’re going to kick my ass like Connor did, please at least let me drink my coffee. I’d stick around the precinct though- we’ll have someone come in with a fix for all,” Gavin cut himself off, waving to his neck.

“I’ll be ‘real’ with you detective, the want has decreased since hearing Connor launched you into a wall. I just wanted to ask why you’re in so early.”

Gavin grinned at that. ‘ _ Positives to everything. _ ’ He winked, drinking his coffee. “For once, legit can’t tell ya. You’ll see why- it’s a good morning.” Gavin turned then, grabbing another disposable cup. Loading it with sugar and some kinda flavored creamer from the fridge, he filled it and his mug up. Capping the cup, he walked back to his desk, setting both of them down and starting up his computer.

“Reed! Get in here!” He heard Fowler’s voice call for him, and seen the way people stopped, looking to him as he walked over. Slipping into the office, Fowler motioned for him to close the door. “So, care to explain why, after years, Elijah fucking Kamski wants to stop by the DPD and is dropping your name?” Gavin shrugged his shoulders, remaining standing by the door.

“Told you I had some shit to do yesterday. I got connections.” Fowler sighed at the vague answer, Gavin smirking just a bit at the noise.

“I know you got connections, but this one is far above your normal back-alley informants. So care to explain why he’s here?” Gavin tapped his fingers on the bow, raising an eyebrow. It took a minute, maybe not even that, before Fowler whistled, sitting back. “You got someone to work on fixing that?”

“Sorta. More like- told the right people what’s going on. But you know I’m not a tech geek Fowler,” a lie. He could easily explain it, but the point was to keep suspicion low.

“No one said you were Reed. I’ll let him in, but let me know the next time you get some outside help. I should’ve known something was up when you came in so damn early.” Gavin attempt to wink at that, grinning to the captain.

“You might wanna call in the other guys affected too, there was two officers- just met one in the breakroom- that seen me before I got this covered up.” Fowler nodded, shooing the detective away.

“I know how to do my damn job, get going and greet your visitor.”

Gavin didn’t need to be told twice, leaving the room and going towards his desk. Grabbing the cup he had for the other, he took a sip from his mug and then walked to the elevator, waiting. When it dinged, he expected to see his brother and Chloe, but instead, Tina’s face greeted him. “Oh shit- Gavie!”

“Why does everyone shorten my name like that?” He groaned, only getting a grin for his trouble.

“Aw is this for me?”

“No.” He held it out of her reach, grinning as she was the only one his height beat anymore.

“Come on Gav- give it!” The door opened again, and this time he seen the face of Eli and Chloe. Chloe lit up, like she always did, smiling widely and not even waiting for his brother.

“ _ Smol bean! _ ” Gavin groaned, Tina settling back onto her feet with a smile. Chloe threw her arms around Gavin, and Gavin laughed, hugging her back with one arm.

“I really fucking hate that name.”

“Chloe it’s been so long! If I had known you were showing up, I would’ve dragged Audrey here!”

“It really has been! Oh how’s Audrey been? She got into medical right?” The two girls walked to the side, and Gavin shook his head as they did. Elijah walked over to him, seeing the coast was clear, and he held out his coffee.

“Ah thank you,” the voice was soft, whispy, elegant. ‘ _ Fake as fuck _ .’ Gavin grinned, and just resisted tipping it to trip the bastard. “I’m sorry that took so long, Chloe insisted on saying hello to Melanie at the reception desk.”

“Wasn’t that the one that seen me and went ‘ _ ohhh uniforms _ ’?” Elijah grinned, nodding, though he kept it hidden from cameras with his coffee cup. When it was brought down, his face was back to that neutral smile.

“Anyways, Detective Reed, I believe I have something of use to you? Have you gathered the affected androids?” Gavin shrugged to that.

“Nines should be coming in with Hank any minute now, and Fowler said he was contacting the other three.”

“You exposed  _ five _ people to a virus?” Gavin blinked, looking to the ceiling before back down to Eli, a small, sheepish smile.

“Six! Forgot about Josh. He should be coming in with Connor.” Elijah shook his head, sighing loudly, then they both looked over as heels tapped quickly towards Gavin. There was matching grins on Tina’s and Chloe’s faces, and Chloe grabbed his arm, looking at him. He could tell something was up, and he wanted to die already.

“So when were you going to tell us Nines is a bit more important than just ‘ _ a partner _ ’?” The way she phrased that, Gavin instantly bristled, glaring at Tina with pure murder in his eyes. He mouthed ‘ _ you bitch _ ’ to the girl, and Chloe pulled him into a hug.

“Oh I’m so happy! It’s been so long since you pulled your head out of your ass! I can’t wait to meet him!” Elijah looked curious, and he knew the price was coming back full circle, Gavin closing his eyes as he felt everything in him twist in anxiety.

“Please don’t take the she-devil at face value- there is  _ nothing _ there- simple, and one-sided.”

“So you admit it’s a crush?” Tina’s voice chirped in, and Gavin felt pain and embarrassment. He must have been scanned by Chloe, cause he felt the grip loosen. Her voice dropped, concern lacing it immediately.

“Gavin?” He pushed her off, straightening his coat, and when his eyes opened, he felt tired of all the lights.

“Drop it, both of you. Not here, not now. Mr. Kamski, follow me please.”

He knew the mood dropped, and heard a muttered ‘ _ shit _ ’ from Tina, but he ignored it to lead the two to an interrogation room. It was the safest place to do this, and Gavin waited towards the back of the room. Chloe, already immune, excused herself to catch up with Tina, so it was just the two of them. “So.”

“So,” Gavin replied, arms crossed as he looked into the mirror.

“Spill. Everything, Gavin.” He hated that authoritative tone, knowing that if he didn’t answer to it, Elijah could and would make his next month a living hell. Deals or not. The last time he didn’t answer, coincidentally about his last ex, Elijah had an ST200 silly string his car every time it parked at the DPD. And a balloon with ‘ _ call me _ ’ attached to the side view mirror. People thought it  _ was _ his ex doing all that.

“Not much to spill. He’s- my type. Tall, handsome, fucking could rip me apart easily, smart, sarcastic- and he’s completely fucked by this coding and it’s way too early to be this  _ stupid _ with want Eli. He’s a walking QR code to me!” Gavin groaned, hand over his face, placing pressure on his scar. “And then he goes and does all these things to drive me nuts Eli and- and I don’t think he cares…” His voice trailed off, arms crossing a little tighter. He heard the chair move, and then  _ step step step _ of the other coming closer.

“You don’t think he returns it over?”

“Why would he? I’m an ass Eli- kinda my whole gig. We’re fine enough with each other and I don’t want to ruin a perfectly good partnership with stupid shit like ‘oh hey yeah, I’ve known you for a little over a week but I’m stupidly head-over-heels for you and your laughter makes me malfunction and-’” Elijah stopped his rambling, laughing at him and punching him in the arm.

“I think you’re selling yourself short. And not because of your height.” Kamski dodged a lazy punch for his shoulder. “But really, the QR code responded quite positively for the short time he knew you. And still is reacting positively. You should try being less down on yourself idiot.” Gavin groaned, looking over to him. When he went to speak the door opened very suddenly, Nines standing on the side with a red LED that shifted to blue instantly, the glitched in color there. Hank was behind him, looking between the two and Gavin noticed the scowl he got seeing Eli.

“Well fuck, Fowler said we had a guest but I didn’t think I’d have to deal with you again.” He sounded so annoyed, Gavin snorted a bit, grinning at that. Elijah straightened himself up, fixing his jacket with a flourish and extending his hand.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Lieutenant Anderson. I hoped I would get to interact with you today.”

“I’d say likewise but that’d be a fucking lie.” Hank walked over to the table, sitting down and looking between Eli and him. “The fuck are you doing with a guy like this Reed?” Gavin bit the inside of his cheek, though his eyes lit up with the held in laughter.

“I know some people who know Mr. Kamski. We’ve talked before- and when he got word of all this,” he was cut off, Elijah clapping his hands together and jutting in. Gavin watched as Nines walked over to his side. The way the other looked at him had heat blossom in his face, and he quickly turned away, expecting and leaning into the hand on the back of his neck. ‘ _ Bastard. _ ’

“When I heard from Detective Reed that there was a new visual virus, as I put it simply, I couldn’t ignore the opportunity to trim this particular virus before others copied it. That’s what I’ve been doing lately, helping to maintain the safety from threats for all people.”

“Does that include yourself?” Gavin tensed, about to turn on Hank when Nines hand squeezed, and he melted.

“ _ Hank _ be nice. Cut to it Mr. Kamski, please.” He hated using his ‘polite’ tones, knowing they never came off genuine.

“Right! Well, after using Gavin as a catalyst-” Nines voice cut in, deceptively soft though the intent still carried.

“ _ Using _ Gavin as a what?” Nines had a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, and Gavin was pulled closer to the other. He let it happen, knowing it would all stop soon. 

“A catalyst with another model, to initiate the virus. Don’t worry, Gavin was never at risk and now- I come to the DPD with the finished anti-virus! I will be releasing this via a mass-patch that can be received at any CyberLife facility, but since Gavin here personally came to me asking for help with the RK models here, I decided it would be best to deliver it personally!”

Elijah crossed over, suddenly standing in front of Nines. “And I’m so  _ glad _ I did. Gavin here refused to speak much of you, RK900.” Nines looked over, raising an eyebrow, and he looked away, swallowing hard around the lump in his throat.

“Please, Nines is fine. And that’s unfortunate.” Gavin heard the hum, high pitched, and when he looked over he saw the slightest smirk. Eyes going wide, he internally begged for Elijah to stop. That look and noise never meant anything good.

“Really it is! Given how much my  _ wife _ knows, rather than myself. You can’t stop girls from gossiping, or outing you.” That caught Nines attention, and Gavin actually did pull away, laughing loudly.

“Hahaha- very funny Mr. Kamski! Really though, now isn’t the time for messing around. Connor will be back very shortly and I’d like to have my partner ready to deal with him before I get my ass kicked. For the… Third… Time.” He grit his teeth, though the effect was greatly diminished with how red his face was.

“I’d like to hear more, I didn’t know you were married, Mr. Kamski.”

“Yep! I married my beloved Chloe the day after androids were announced free, though.”

“Wait, not the same one you had Connor try to shoot? Right?” Hank’s voice carried concern, and Eli turned, gasping at him.

“Ok first- ehm, first off. I knew Connor was not going to shoot her. He was showing signs of deviancy, I took the most direct path to further it. Second off, no. That was an ST200, her name is Sue, and she’s fine- do not worry. She got very pampered that night for helping me out with that.” Gavin watched him tug his coat again, before turning to Nines.

“Before Detective Reed blows something due to this conversation, let’s patch that anti-virus. While I do, tell me about yourself, Nines. I never even got to see your blueprint so I’m curious.” Elijah moved to the table, waiting for Nines to sit down. Gavin noticed how his eyes never left him, and it drove him nuts. He wanted to run, stay in place, and scream all at the same time. Nines began talking about his upgrades, showing off his  _ damned teeth _ , upgraded chassis, the tools built into his hands, and-  _ oh holy fuuuck. _ Gavin took a seat beside Hank when Nines popped out fucking  _ claws _ .

“They’re strong enough to tear through thin metals and plastic, meant to enable me access through cars and riot shields… Gavin, you alright?” Gavin felt his phone buzz and shook his head, placing his arms on the table and hiding it. He felt a large hand, Hank’s, on his back, hearing the old man laugh.

“He’ll be fine kid, continue.” There was a pause, but Nines did continue, explaining a couple more features that he had over his predecessor.

“Fascinating! Alright, I exposed the port. There is a manual override, in case, for any reason, you need to scan QR codes in the future, but now, simply scanning over them won’t download the information immediately. You’ll get a brief overview if it’s a product, and if it’s not, it’ll come up ‘Personal Coding’, like what’s on Gavin’s neck. Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be, Mr. Kamski.” There wasn’t a sound or anything, Gavin knew there wasn’t, so he looked up.

Nines eyes were closed, but the moment his LED went a pure, calm blue- no glitched specks of yellow in it, Gavin let out the biggest sigh. Everything hit at once. Pain, joy, relief, loss. Gavin got up, and moved suddenly, Hank calling out for him and he left the room. ' _I can't be there to see him_.' He weaved his way around, finding the bathrooms and heading in. Hands placed against the sink when he reached it, he let his whole body sag. Nines wasn’t affected by coding. It would all stop. He would prove Tina and everyone right that Nines was just acting on barely-there feelings that were amplified. He didn’t like how much he shook.

It was minutes before the door opened, and the gruff voice he heard wasn’t the one he wanted. “Nines is good, though you knew that.” A nod. “You alright kid?” He shook his head, gripping the sink tighter, knowing the knuckles were white. “He was upset not seeing you there. Tried following me out but I convinced him that it’d be best I talk to you first.” Gavin stood up a bit, breathing deep and stilling himself.

“I’m- really fucking happy shit’s fixed. Now we just- go back to being partners and I regret everything last night and just- haaa.” Gavin let out a laugh, and Hank pat his shoulders.

“You got this- wait last night?” Gavin shook his head, looking up with ‘ _ do you want to know _ ’ on his face. “Nevermind. But come on, hiding away won’t help, plus Connor messaged, he’ll be up here any minute.” Gavin pulled away, rubbing his hands as he did.

They walked back to the interrogation room, and Gavin overheard the conversation, pausing midstep. He grabbed Hank, who already stopped, and he was glad they both were detectives. “I have heard your concerns Elijah, and as they are  _ stupid _ and unfounded, I’ve elected to ignore them. I can assure you I can handle Gavin just fine without the help of a stranger.”

“Oh I’m more than a stranger. I know Gavin better than any detective here, including you and Connor.”

“I fail to see how.”

“Try me.” There was a pause, an annoyed hiss.

“Favorite color.”

“It’s a tie- deep blood red or navy blue. I told him he should just admit he likes purple, but he said ‘it’s the contrast between the two Eli, purple is  _ fine _ but purple isn’t one or the other.’ Come on, give me something challenging!”

Gavin  _ knew _ he should stop this conversation, especially when Hank looked over, curiosity all over his face. But he let it go, curious to just how this was going. Part of him hoped they would get along, the stupid part that thought there still was a chance. “Alright… Gavin’s nose scar. There’s no file, in medical or his work, about it and- I’d ask him about it but I have doubts he’ll give me an honest answer.”

“Oh he would. It’s  _ you _ .”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“ _ You’ll see. _ But- he got it from his dad, when he was 15. Old man took a broken bottle, narrowly missed the eyes. So Gavin punched him in the nuts and threw him out the bathroom window and onto the porch roof.” Hank bristled, and that’s when Gavin walked in, frowning at the two.

Nines had the decency to look aside when caught, but Eli just grinned. “He’s all better now! We’re waiting on Connor yes?” Elijah opted to sit on the table, the anti-virus drive in his hands, being spun idly. Nines was suddenly looking to the mirror, LED yellow at being caught. But it was  _ pure _ yellow, no glitched bits to it.

“Bitch,” he began, Hank letting out an offended ‘ _ Gavin! _ ’ and Nines even opening his mouth. “If you’re gonna spill my shit out, you better do it right. I didn’t just throw him out the window, I followed him the fuck out of it. It was only because Liz screamed about the roof caving in that I kicked him off the side of it and crawled back into your room.”

“I had to have my door replaced- and yet you still refused to use it as a weapon because it had my favorite poster on it.”

“It. Was. SIGNED! I would’ve killed him if his dumb broken nose ruined it.”

Nines held up his hand, eyebrows furrowed and LED yellow. “You two lived together?” Gavin sighed, Eli cutting in.

“Maybe. But that’s a story for another time. Thank you Nines, for allowing me to know more about yourself!” Everyone glared at him, and he knew it, but Hank looked down to his phone.

“At attention, all of you. Gavin, back of the room, Connor and Josh incoming.” Gavin nodded, moving to stand in the back of the room. Nines got up, and joined his side, arms crossed across his chest.  _ ‘Lack of touch. _ ’ He knew it would happen, but he still hated it. Elijah stayed in place, and Hank moved back to his seat. Gavin closed his eyes, and prepared himself.  _ ‘Fucking androids. _ ’


	8. Uninstall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin told himself 'good endings are few and far between' in this line of work. He finally gets one himself, and maybe this is the start of something more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter of this before the rating goes up to E! I wasn't going to post today(busy busy) but my beta got through it, and I had enough time to do so!
> 
> So to explain- the 'Want QR Code' works like this: any existing emotions at the time of the scan get amplified. If it got scanned during a time of a fight, they would likely end up instantly dead. With the other people, they /didn't/ hide the code. It was just being repeatedly scanned as emotions developed, meaning it continued to get stronger.
> 
> With Gavin, those who scanned so did so once- since he kept it hidden. Nines scanned him while he was searching for Gavin, worried he was in danger. 'Protect-Care' were his main 'emotions' of the time. Connor scanned him after having a fight the night before. 'Upset-Confusion'. He attacked. Josh had only just met him- 'Curious'.
> 
> With the officers, they hadn't /had/ any recent emotions. It amplified their general, dull 'Dislike-Apathy' into something solid, but not quite dangerous.
> 
> I hope this clears everything up a bit! Yes Nines was acting on code- that 'could've' turned dangerous, but most of it was out of the fact he already started caring for Gavin before he scanned it.(His POV of this whole thing will be explained in the last chapter!)

When the door opened, Josh and Connor entered together. “And then Markus pulls me forwards- oh- you’re all-” He cut off, and Josh quickly darted to the side, knowing what was happening next. Connor’s LED went yellow, red speckled in. Gavin felt himself tense, taking a breath as he got ready to fight again. But then Connor’s eyes flicked towards Nines, and stiffly, Connor walked to where Nines had been sitting. Hank let out a sigh, reaching a hand over to take Connor’s. It was obvious the man was straining against the coding.

“Well, this is going well already. I’ll save the small talk for after.” Elijah got to work, exposing Connor’s external ports easily, since they were in a common place, unlike Nines’ had been.

Gavin said nothing, afraid that talking would break Connor’s concentration. Even as Josh cautiously came closer. When he was in reach of Gavin, Nines blue eyes focused on the man, and Josh _squeaked_ , LED going red for a second. “Just saying hi!” Their voices were a whisper, and Gavin rolled his eyes.   
“Poor timing, Josh.” Sensing the argument, he pulled out his phone, holding it towards Josh with the messages open. When it was handed back, there was a number. - _Sup Josh, what’s going on?-_

- _ Just wanted to say hi. You seem much better, and I like the ribbon. _ \- Gavin blinked, looking to the ribbon and grinning. He missed Nines’ raised eyebrow.

- _ Thanks. I figured a little change up would ease the mood. I’m glad to see you’re doing good as well. What fun shit did you get up to? _ -

They continued texting, Josh easing close til their shoulders were touching. Gavin found it relaxing, not focusing on Connor but rather on just answering the other’s questions. - _ Hey! Maybe after your shift, if everything goes well, we can meet up? I know of a nice coffee shop, it’s doing open mic poetry. _ \- Gavin wasn’t much of a poetry guy, but something tugged in the back of his head about the way this was worded.

- _ I hope you don’t expect nothing out of me, I’m actual garbage in poetry. _ \- Josh laughed at that, looking up and shrinking as everyone looked to him. “Sorry sorry.”

- _ No no, it’ll just be nice to hang out with someone new. And you already have my number. _ \- Now that definitely got Gavin to pause.

‘ _ Number. Meet for coffee… Is he flirting with me? _ ’ Gavin blinked a couple times, and then quickly typed, confusion evident on his face. - _ Wait wait, is this like, date wise? _ \- He felt a hand on his wrist, way too gentle, and looked over to see Josh smiling at him. His LED was blue, glitched with yellow.

- _ What do you think? _ \- Oh.  _ Oh. _ Gavin flushed red, smiled sheepishly.

_ -Ngl, you’re cute. Really! But uh, not my type. If I’m brutally honest, my interests are elsewhere. _ \- He looked over, and noticed the flood of more red. ‘ _ Shit. _ ’ But then it went to yellow, and Josh backed off, looking up to Nines. Gavin did the same, noticing the quick spins as he glared pure  _ murder _ at Josh.

- _ It’s alright, I hope you tell him soon! _ \- Gavin swallowed, and put his phone away, wanting to lean into Nines or run. Either or. But then Connor was standing, fixing his tie, and looking over to the trio.

“Oh wow- that was some persistent coding. Everything’s good now!” His voice was cheery, and Gavin let out a sigh of relief, kicking off the wall and walking over. He held out his fist, a tired smile on his face.

“No hard feelings?” Connor seemed surprised, the look turning to a sheepish smile as a fist gently bumped against his.

“I should be saying that to you! Thank you for getting a hold of Mr. Kamski and finding such a quick solution! I hope nothing was going on over here while I was down, I seen a lot of yellow.” Gavin shrugged, looking to the two. Nines looked away, face passive, and Josh looked down sheepishly.

“Nothing too important, just talking. My turn.” Josh walked over, sitting down, and Elijah hooked him in. Connor walked over to Nines, holding out his hand, the chassis exposed. Gavin watched for a moment, hoping Nines would take it, but he didn’t.

Gavin sighed, before moving over to Eli. “You got this?”

“Hm? Oh yes- disappearing again on me?” Gavin looked around, grinning slightly.

“Yeah, you’re in good hands. I’m not needed here anymore, and I gotta check up on Chloe and a warrant. You know how it is shitlord.” Eli scoffed, the LEDs of everything flashing yellow and Hank choking on air. Elijah looked up, eyebrow twitching despite having the same, customer-service smile.

“Of course of course,  _ hobbit _ .” Gavin gasped, one hand over his heart and the other on his forehead.

“Wounded! Wounded I say, how will I  _ ever _ recover!” He looked to Nines, seeing blue eyes and the tilt of his head. Quickly looking away, Gavin closed the door, taking a breath before walking off.

Nickelback. Nickelback is what came into his head to hum, singing softly and fingers strumming to the chords in his pocket. “Scream ‘are we having fun yet’, yeah, yeah-” He turned the corner, seeing Tina, still here, and Audrey, visitor tag, with Chloe at Gavin’s desk. Fowler was glaring daggers at the group of girls, and when Gavin got over to them he sighed loudly. “You guys are the reason Fowler is going gray.”

“Bitch he’s bald,” Tina instantly chirped, turning to see him. “Cute ribbon, who are you trying to impress?” Chloe was next, reaching over to touch the loops gently.

“Me of course! I told him to wear something cute, isn’t it?”

“The great Detective Reed takes advice from  _ you _ ,” Audrey asked, laughing a bit while her voice was filled with sarcasm. Gavin felt red, and made a shoo’ing motion at Tina and Audrey.

“Break it up, all of you. Tina, you should be working before Fowler assigns you bathroom detail, and Audrey- Audrey what are you even doing here!?”

“Tina messaged me that Chloe was here and I couldn’t miss my queen.” Gavin rolled his eyes, nudging Chloe with his elbow.

“Queen,  _ really _ . Just- get going.” Gavin watched two more officers head back to the interrogation room, and his shoulders slumped. Suddenly, ‘ _ I want you to want me _ ’ played quietly from his phone, causing Gavin to jump. Chloe smirked, and Gavin quickly turned it off, glaring at her when he did so.

“Let loose a little Gavin, I can see how tense you are- you don’t need to carry the whole world on your shoulders.” Gavin rolled his eyes, glaring at Tina and Audrey now. Tina held up her hands, and he saw her eyes dart to the side. Following them, his heart jumped to his throat.

Nines was walking out, CyberLife jacket hanging over his arm, and their eyes met for the briefest moment before Nines was walking towards them. LED a calm blue, Gavin still felt so happy about that. ‘ _ Back to normal. _ ’ But watching Nines outside their group, instead of pressing in to be by his side- he felt the distance like a tight string. “I hope nothing is the matter?”

“Oh hey Nines! Nothing is wrong, the girls were just chatting, but me and Audrey are going to take off.” Tina punched Gavin’s shoulder, roughly, and Gavin huffed at the treatment.

“Really- I was just recently thrown and you punch me. Rude.”

“Deal with it. Later Chloe! Call us if you wanna hang out sometime!” Chloe waved, staying where she was. Now with the group cut in half, Gavin moved to his chair, sitting down finally and pulling up the search to find out what was holding up the warrant now.

But then he quickly got up, seeing no chair for Chloe to sit. “Chloe. Sit.” Nines looked over to him, but he pushed the chair to Chloe.

“Where will you-”

“I won’t, but I’m not going to let you stand either. Sit. Eli will be done shortly.” He turned back to his computer, and in one move, dropped to a knee, cracking his shoulder as he started typing while knelt.

“So princely looking~!” He heard her sit down, rolling closer, then heard Nines’ footsteps. “Isn’t he? He’s a gentleman when he wants to be.”

Gavin felt his face heat up, trying to keep his pursed lips as they were and refuse the grin. “I’m hardly a prince Chloe.”

“I have to agree with him, he’s more the knight or soldier than the prince. He’s worked hard for his respect.” His face was definitely red, Chloe’s laughter no doubt turning heads.

“And what does that make you hm?”

“Nines you don’t have to entertain this cra-”

“The king that hired him as my right hand man, of course.” Nines sounded so smug, and it was a relief to hear the subtle jabs again. ‘ _ Back to normal. _ ’ A relief and pain, and Gavin managed to smile through both.

“ _ Phck _ , are you kidding me?” Of course the smile dropped for actual anger, holding his hands out at the screen. “ _ Still _ not approved! They say ‘sometime tomorrow’ on it, despite CyberLife now making a patch for this shit with her coding!” Chloe tsked, reaching over to grab the back of his neck. He relaxed, of course, familiar hands even if they weren’t Nines. But she went further, thumb pressing in, soothing circles, yet a tight grip- Gavin moved for both knees to be on the ground, letting his forehead fall into his arms. He missed the way Chloe winked to Nines, LEDs turning yellow, but once the hand pulled off he felt a little bit less stabby towards whomever was stalling this.

He sat back on his heels, trying to think of what to do next. “Well shit, there’s nothing else we can do ‘til the warrant comes in. Nines, do we have new cases or are we still helping Hank?” Nines hummed, and Gavin looked over to see both his and Chloe’s LEDs swishing yellow occasionally. “Shitlords, if you’re going to talk about me, say it where I can hear you.”

“I don’t think you’d appreciate that,  _ Gavin _ .” Nines dropped his voice, and the reaction was almost immediate, Gavin turning red and snapping his head back to face the computer. ‘ _ Is he teasing me for Chloe’s amusement or… _ ’ He could hear the deep chuckle, and Gavin realized just what kind of position he was in. Scrambling, he got up, Chloe giggling as well and he wanted  _ out of here _ before the blood went from north to south.

“Ha ha- I’m going to check on Eli since you’re out here with Chloe.” Gavin moved to the other side of Nines, head ducked down, and he faintly saw a flicker of red as he kept going. He nearly ran into someone, dodging them with a slight twist of his body on one foot. They grumbled, and Gavin realized it was the officers. ‘ _ Good. That means he’s done and he can fuck o- _ ’ His thought cut off as he seen Fowler come out of the interrogation room.

“Thank you again Mr. Kamski for helping to keep this problem controlled. I can assure you Detective Reed and Nines will be available for that charity dinner- you sure you don’t want Lieutenant Anderson and Connor though?”

Elijah was out next, smile easy as he followed Fowler. “No no, you’ll find I’m partial to Reed. I’ve dealt with him before, and no offense to the Lieutenant or Connor, but I doubt they’d want to stick around me for that long.”

“Hell no I wouldn’t- speak of the devil!” He called out Reed- him, Connor, and Josh following behind the two. Fowler stopped, raising an eyebrow, but Kamski kept going. He took to hugging Gavin, getting a hiss in response. Gavin resorted to dropping his voice to keep the humans at least from hearing.

“ _ Couldn’t fucking wait could ya?! _ ”

“ _ Oh like the secret isn’t fucked. _ ”

“ _ Well whose fault would that be jackass! _ ” They pulled apart, and through gritted teeth, Gavin forced a smile. “It was nice talking to you again Elijah. Thank you for being  _ such a big help _ .”

‘ _ My brother is a bastard. _ ’ Elijah simply coo’d, petting his brother’s head, reminding him even Elijah had inches on him. “You too! I can’t wait to see you and Nines at the dinner! Remember, it’s formal, so try to dress up for it.”

“Uh huh and when is it?”

“Next month, the 15th. You’re already cleared for it.”

“Of course I am. I’ll see you then.” He pulled away, looking to Hank and Connor then.

“Oh and Detective Reed?” Gavin bristled, Hank chuckling making it worse.

“Yes Mr. Kamski.”

“Try doubting yourself a little less. Also keep the QR Code covered up for another week, I don’t know how it’ll disappear, but just in case, I’d give it a week before exposing it.” Gavin nodded, moving past Fowler to get to Hank.

“Yeah yeah I know, have a good day.” Kamski walked off at that, and the hallway went silent.

“How close  _ are _ you and Mr. Kamski Gavin?” ‘ _ Gavin _ ’, from Connor’s mouth. It was a nice start.

“Close. I never said my connections weren’t the man and his wife themselves. Now- Hank, I still haven’t gotten that damn warrant for the bitch. Are the four of us working together or?” Fowler interrupted then, clearing his throat, and Gavin looked to him.

“I’ll have the four of you work Hank’s cases together. Then Reed, expect a smaller one to introduce Nines into your field of expertise until the Kamski dinner. I won’t question how you have connections, as long as they keep bringing up results of course. That sound good with everyone?”

Four ‘Yes sir’s rang out, and Josh looked sheepish between them. Hank and Connor followed Fowler, but Josh tugged on Gavin’s coat. “Erm wait- I wanted to clear the air, since I’m a bit confused.” He heard one pair of footsteps stop.

“Shoot.”

“ _ Are _ you not interested because the coding was talking, or because you’re actually just- not interested? I would like to try again- If it’s possible.” Gavin blinked, and then went absolutely bright red as the other continued. “And without your partner glaring at me like he did with Connor…”

‘ _ Wait what. _ ’ “He was? I mean, glaring at you like that.”

“Yeah! Honestly terrifying, you’re so brave to work with him so closely in my eyes.” Gavin bristled, hating hearing other androids admit to their fear of Nines. The back of his head pushed him to take the chance, that he shouldn’t hang up on Nines. But his heart rebelled.

“He’s my  _ partner _ , and honestly he’s not terrifying to me at all. What you look at in fear, I do in awe. That guy’s got strength and intelligence in spades and uses it to look up petty nicknames and learn about music, and he’s chosen, with all the freedom in the world, to pick a job that saves people. That’s not terrifying, that’s fucking  _ amazing. _ ”

Josh blinked, then grinned, though Gavin could see the sadness in it. “So you  _ are _ interested in someone else.” There was a long pause, and Gavin went over his own words. ‘ _ You played yourself there. _ ’ Going red to the point it went down his neck, peaking above and below the bandages, Gavin turned, immediately regretting everything.

“Stop- stop that thought don’t say it- I hate every single one of you fucks today.” He grumbled, and Josh knew he didn’t mean it.

“Let me walk with you then,” Gavin didn’t see who was stopped, meaning they must have fucked off during the pause, but nodded.

“Yeah sure. I’m sorry I couldn’t-”

“Don’t be. I’ll find another guy or gal, I’m not that picky.” Gavin hummed, then smiled.

“I know twenty something ST200s that I could introduce you to.” Josh tripped over his own feet, and they walked into the main room.

“Single?”

“Some of them I think. I’ll ask Chloe if anyone’s looking to date and pass my number over.” Josh laughed softly, nodding, and then suddenly shut up, LED yellow. Gavin looked forward to see Nines in front of them, glaring  _ again _ at Josh.

“I was informed we’ll be working with Hank and Connor. Hank wishes to stop for drinks for everyone before we start out to check out something from his latest case. Josh, are done holding up my partner or?” Gavin smiled sheepishly, about to speak up, but Josh cut in, tone  _ knowing _ and teasing.

“So defensive, he’s all yours. Message me if any of the girls are single Gavin, thank you.” Gavin nodded, feeling like at this point, he needed a drink stronger than coffee. Vodka maybe.

“Will do, I’ll see if I can hook you up by that poetry thing.” It wouldn’t be hard, Josh seemed nice, and was part of the revolution- he was sure one of the Chloe’s would jump at the chance.

“That’d be nice! Peace.” Gavin walked past Nines, and noticed his partner turn to follow him out.

Elijah. Chloe. Tina. Hank.  _ Josh _ . Audrey. Now just for Connor to notice, and officially everyone but Nines would fucking know about Gavin’s not-so-secret crush. ‘ _ End my life. Just- I could absolutely get away with hiding under the cupboards and never coming back out. Cowardly, but this point, worth it. _ ’ “He seems… Nice.” Nines voice seemed strained, and Gavin reached up, taking the other by surprise when he tilted his head. LED yellow. Just yellow, spinning slightly now.

“Just making sure tincan. And yeah, he is. Not my type though, I’m going to see if one of the girls I know is looking.” Gavin admitted, and he watched as Nines’ LED settled back to blue.

“You, playing wingman? Are you sure you haven’t become sick?” Teasing. Gavin loved that teasing tone, rolling his eyes with a grin. ‘ _ We’re back to teasing- phck that’s- that’s good. _ ’

“I happen to be likeable, believe it or not! The least I could do for a guy I turned down.” He walked ahead, Nines matching his steps as they walked over to where Hank and Connor were.

“So he  _ did _ ask you out.” Nines sounded  _ annoyed _ , and Connor laughed, chipping into the conversation.

“Who, Josh?” Gavin nodded, to which he got a smile in return for. “Doesn’t surprise me. He tried to ask Markus out. While we were at an event- I was  _ holding his hand _ . Josh can be dense to the word ‘taken’.”

“I’m single you fuck!” Gavin hissed, pouting slightly with a glare. That smile didn’t leave, Hank walking ahead of them. Connor fell into step beside Gavin, and Gavin felt a bit lighter at that.

‘ _ Friends. _ ’ The thought hit him like a jackhammer, and he knew Connor said something, but he stopped midstep, blinking at Hank. Nines and Connor paused, Nines looking back with worry. “Gavin?” Shaking his head, he let out a soft laugh, feeling his insides turn to mush. Hank looked back, and Gavin felt relief at seeing the knowing grin.

“Come on kid, you’re suggesting the place since Nines has shit taste.” It took a moment, but he caught up, smiling a bit easier. Sure he lost the closeness he and Nines had, but he gained Hank and Connor on the start of friends.

“Phck yeah, you guys are going to love this one place.”

Turns out the next two days were busy. Gavin’s mind fell away from the warrant, and the fact Nines and him only exchanged playful banter. It fell away from the loss of touch, and then Gavin was just- Gavin again. Tina stopped picking on him, and while she was  _ still _ pissed at Connor, nothing else was said about that night. Gavin lead the way inside the second night, all of them filing in late- hours past shift change. “ _ Phck _ , I’m tired.” His elbow hurt where he had been body checked into a wall by a guy they were chasing, and his jeans were shredded, but the soreness was nice. 

“Ugh same, I want to go home to Sumo and not move the whole weekend. Shit- you still have to work tomorrow right?” Gavin perked up, heading into his seat. Nines stood behind him, and Gavin didn’t think much of the hovering. ‘ _ Easier to see my computer than to wait for me to finish. _ ’

“Yeah we do. Fowler says we got a new op. It’ll be Nines’ first one with me, I’m excited to have a proper handler than just- Chris or Tina bullshitting outside for hours in my ear. They never turn the mic off.” Connor laughed softly, and looked to Nines.

“How you feeling about it?”

“It’ll be my first time doing something like this, of course I’m excited to excel and prove I’m the better choice.”

“I hate how competitive you are, for literally having no competition.” Connor sounded just a little bit sour, and Gavin couldn’t help but laugh.

“It’s alright Connor, not your fault the only undercover Hank can do is the senior citizens club.” He heard Hank grumble, before he suddenly spoke up from the breakroom.

“Respect your fucking elders Gavin, I’ll let Connor kick your ass again.” Gavin winced, pouting to Connor.

“You wouldn’t.” Connor laughed, and suddenly there was a hand on his shoulder. Nines had leaned forward, fingers digging in just slightly.

“That’s alright Hank, I think I’d bet on Gavin lasting longer than you.” Connor’s ‘ _ ohhh _ ’ was precious, and Gavin laughed then, leaning into the touch.

Fowler interrupted all of them, pulling his jacket on. It was almost time to abandon jackets sadly, winter was turning into spring. “Alright you four, break it up. I only need one pair of trouble makers in here to do the paperwork. Reed, Nines- make sure you’re here early.” Gavin nodded, and looked to the time. He’d get plenty of sleep still.

“I’ll take the paperwork. Go ahead, you three go home.” Connor blinked, then pat the top of his head, making Gavin huff.

“Aw, thank you detective! Come on Hank, I’ve been thinking of trying a new stirfry recipe for you!”

“Aw fuck… Night Nines, night Gavin.” Gavin waved, hollering at them.

“Don’t wake up your damn neighbors!” He turned back to his work, still feeling the hand on his shoulder. “You too Nines, you should catch up to them if you don’t want to end up taking a taxi. This’ll take me a bit.”

“Then let me help. I’m faster at this.”

“And also needing a stasis. Connor snitched, you skipped yours last night.” He felt the squeeze, footsteps leaving him. He knew better than to think Nines was listening.

“My thoughts were rather pre-occupied. It was raining yesterday- it’s supposed to rain tomorrow again.”

“Yeah, lakefront rounds. Our fucking luck, but maybe it’ll be helpful. Easy to get lost in a crowd of umbrellas.”

“You truly think of everything.” Gavin shrugged, sending in a file and starting on the next one. But then Nines was back, and Gavin looked up, blinking.

“The fuck?” Nines stole his coat, the leather too small on his giant figure, and the man was pouting.

“I was going to try and steal your coat, in hopes to say ‘you can wear mine’, but I got caught on what to do once I grabbed your coat.” Gavin blinked, then laughed, his chair tipping back a bit as he couldn’t help it. He looked so  _ silly _ , arms sticking out awkwardly.

“Bend over you dipshit, lemme help you.” Nines obeyed, and Gavin pulled the coat off. “Why do you want me to wear your coat anyways? You haven’t been wearing one.” He questioned, pulling the other’s arms out gently. Coat safely set aside, Gavin sat back, arms crossed over his chest. Nines sighed, before pulling up a bag. It was dropped onto Gavin’s lap, and Nines leaned against his desk, basically sitting on it.

“I seen it while I was looking to expand my wardrobe, and thought you’d like it. It’s lighter than the leather jacket, and it’s in the same style as you wear around the office.”

“Crawled out of a trashcan?” Nines smiled, a soft chuckle, and of course he returned the smile. He pulled out the light jacket, the thin material soft yet flexible. AT first glance it seemed it would be small, but his breath hitched as he realized why. He put on the dark red fabric, feeling it stretch and hug perfectly. The sleeves were longer, ending halfway down his thumbs so he could bunch it up, and it hugged around his chest while remaining loose around his stomach. “Water proof?”

“Very observant. It’ll be better to wear this than an umbrella or a rain poncho, since this doesn’t stick out as much. Plus, the pockets have water proof zippers as well, and there’s inside pockets,” he leaned in, sliding his finger along Gavin’s chest, “here and here. In case you need to hide something close to your mouth.” ‘ _ Mics. I’m in love with a genius. _ ’

“Damn Nines, this is really nice thanks. You don’t need to be getting me shit though, spend your money on yourself really.” Nines leaned back, and Gavin noticed the computer was typing. ‘ _ He distracted me! _ ’ “Did you really just file everything.”

“I did. And I  _ am _ spending money on myself. That looks good on you,  _ Gavin _ . Who’s going to be your handler again tomorrow?” Nines was grinning, tone mischievous. Gavin couldn’t help but feel heat curl around inside, unsure of to stay in his gut or move to his face.

“Yeah yeah I get it, you just want to see me wear something tight don’t you.”

“I missed seeing you in ‘a croptop and jeans two sizes too small’ apparently.” Gavin hoped he wasn’t imagining the sour note he heard.

“Are you still mad Connor’s been over and you haven’t?” Gavin got up, seeing as everything was done anyways. He held onto his leather jacket, but wanted to break the new one in. It was worth it, as Nines’ eyes zeroed in on his chest. Gavin watched yellow smooth itself, taking over blue.

“Nines?”

“We can fix that, you know. I don’t have to go back to Hank’s.” Meeting blue eyes, he didn’t feel the need to step back as Nines got up this time. LED was still yellow, but his eyes were so  _ clear _ , sparks of warmth that shot through them,  _ through him _ . Gavin was the first to break eye contact, looking to the door.

“No you don’t. You sure you want to come over though?” He felt a hand hold his face, tilting him back to look at Nines.

“You know Gavin, for how great a detective you can be, you are extremely  _ dense _ when it comes to attraction.” Gavin pulled away, laughing the nerves and butterflies that suddenly sprung up. It didn’t help chase away his voice, repeating and wrapping around him. “Go to the car, now.” The voice was soft but the command still carried, and Gavin grabbed his things, pulling out his keys.

  
He didn’t even make it to the elevator before Nines slid in, and Gavin felt how close he hovered now. But there was no touch- at first. When the elevator dinged, Gavin felt a hand on the small of his back, and jumped, before it lead him through the lobby. The receptionist could barely get through her ‘good night’ as they went out the door, and Gavin unlocked his car. Nines stole his keys then, throwing a wink Gavin’s way. “I think you’ll be too distracted to drive.” ‘ _ Fair. _ ’ He nodded, getting in the passenger seat. He remembered the playlist he made for Nines, the songs playing through the car gently by the time he got in. Nines said nothing, simply smiling and mouthing along to the words. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo- that was honestly my favorite chapter. There's art of these two set after chapter 9 for the new year! >u0  
> https://lupo-was-here.tumblr.com/post/189869051363/wishing-you-a-happy-holidays-and-a-wonderful-new
> 
> Enjoy everyone! Next chapter will be rated E- Nines finally gets to go to Gavin's hah.


	9. Completion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally home and together, they can be them- no coding controlling either of their actions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the comments, kudos, and the absolute joy you guys have brought me seriously. I will be writing sequels for this, though they're on the back-burner while I get ULG launched and Try, Try Again finished up!
> 
> Enjoy this very fluffy and kinky intimate time they finally get to have. Also Nines calls Gavin an idiot. It's all good.

It was a silent, peaceful ride, Gavin feeling more in control and not as flustered when they got to his apartment. He showed Nines where to park, and then lead the way inside. No one was hanging out in the lobby area this late, and he dug out his keycard and got in the elevator. Nines’ hand was on his hip now, pulling him close, and Gavin nearly melted at the contact. ‘ _ I’m this badly touch starved, if he starts something tonight, I’m done for. _ ’ They got to his apartment, and Gavin let Nines in first, taking off his shoes after a moment and locking the door behind them. He hung up his leather jacket, listening to Nines head in further. “If you need thirium, there’s some in the back of the fridge. There’s also flavored water that’s safe for you to drink too.”

He moved in, looking around to see Nines squat down by the couch. On it sat a hissing Furball, the black bundle of fur all in hackles. “Furball! Be fucking nice ya dick!” He marched over, Nines laughing as the kitten pressed down hearing his voice. Seeing Gavin march over, it ran off, and Gavin shook his head.

“Not very friendly at first?”

“Connor probably scared him when he was here. He’s only ever seen him, you, and my neighbor how.” Nines frowned at Connor’s name, then suddenly there was hands on Gavin’s hips.

“Well,  _ I’m _ going to leave a better impression of course. Starting with his owner.” Nines voice turned into a  _ purr, _ and Gavin felt it vibrate through him, hands placed on Nines arms.

“What are we doing here?” He had to ask, hoping the tremble in his voice didn’t travel down his whole body. He felt like a yoyo in the hands of a child just learning tricks- bounced around and twisted up. “I thought it was- just the coding from this stupid mark making you act weird. We-” Nines  _ growled _ , and Gavin seen the quick spin of red. Being led to the couch, they sat down, though Nines never let go.

“Gavin. The coding amplified  _ existing _ feelings. It didn’t erase them, or keep them from developing normally.”

“Yeah no shit- but-”

“But _nothing._ You are so stupid sometimes.” Nines smiled, and the complaint died on his tongue. “I wanted to be close to you since you showed compassion for that girl. Instead of seeing what _I_ did, someone who lost control and was possibly a danger to _you_ , just- just a deviant- you saw a girl, hurt and lost. Confused by her own actions, that probably would’ve reset if it hadn’t been for you. I couldn’t grasp it- it conflicted with what Connor told me- and… I had to know more. Then, despite you having every reason to be mad at me, you kept attempting to talk. You worked well, you wanted me to express myself. It was _freeing._ ”  
  
“Gavin, I was trying to reach out long before I accidentally scanned the code. I was just- worried the feelings I had were too soon. I could tell there was more to you than insults and anger-fueled defense. And I wanted to be the one to find that out.” His hands squeezed, and the way his voice dropped to a growl _definitely_ didn’t go straight to Gavin’s dick. “Of course my predecessor had to get in the way. Repeatedly. Between him and Hank’s helicopter family methods, I felt you pull away and it pissed me off. By the time I scanned the code, I made up my mind about you. You are _my_ partner, not theirs. I got to protect you, to unravel you, to tear down every wall with soft touches and teasing.”

Nines looked to Gavin, then to the bathroom, and then to Gavin’s chest. “And I was so close. But then you surprised me again, pushing me away because you felt it was taking advantage of me. And I was grateful, I was. I didn’t want to rush this, despite coding very much telling me I could have made the entirety of this apartment building my enemy very quickly. But at the same time, it  _ hurt _ . I could tell you were scared and I couldn’t- I didn’t know how to fix that. So I pulled away completely and then- for the first time Gavin I was  _ scared _ . Because you were pulling away and I was pulling away and then some- professor model that helped lead a fucking  _ revolution _ was at your side, laughing, shooting glances- and I- I thought.” By this point Nines LED was red, and Gavin  _ despised _ that color being there.

He reached around, arms wrapping around Nines neck. He just leaned in, hugging the other tightly. “I thought I lost my chance.  _ My _ partner was going to have someone else teasing them and… I’m a bit lacking in social graces I suppose.”

“You are literally the last person to know that I have had a crush on you since the day I seen those damn  _ teeth _ .” Nines laughed, pulling back and seeing him smile. Gavin felt calm. It was so weird to feel this calm, this happy, after all the worry and second guessing. “Phck Nines. Yeah, there’s a reason why only Tina was my friend you know. Thanks for not running when you had the chance.”

“Are you saying I can’t run now, detective?” Gavin raised his eyebrows, tilting his head back.

“Oh you  _ can _ , but the hard part will be to keep going.”

“Confidence looks good on you, you should wear it more often.” Gavin choked on air, laughing softly and scooting forward. Nines’ hands moved, pushing under his shirt and jacket.

“Seriously though Nines, I- I’m really fucking happy to hear this. I want you- I want you to be more than my work partner, I want you to be more than just a friend. Even if it means getting hurt again, even if it means a weakness, I’m really fucking happy you are my weakness.” ‘ _ Sappy _ ,’ he thought, about to correct himself. Then the low  _ ‘Gavin’ _ that made heat pool low in his stomach kept him from speaking up. The next second lips were on his, and Gavin responded eagerly. Kissing Nines was amazing, the other pulling him closer and lips warm. Gavin wished he didn’t have to breathe, but he did, Nines pulling back to let him do so.

For a bit that’s all they did, kiss, never pushing it too far. Then Gavin’s curiosity won over, inviting the other to deepen the kiss, hands coming up to cup his face. Teeth, sharp and pricking, nipped his bottom lip before they fully started to make out. It was a push and pull, neither keeping control. Exploring, close, enjoying the simplicity of a kiss. Nines broke it off finally, Gavin gasping, before he felt lips press along his scar, then along his jaw. “ _ Gavin _ . Can I remove this bandage? I want to do something- I’ve wanted to do something for so long.” Gavin nodded, hands moving to take the bandage off himself.

The kisses kept trailing lower, then Gavin felt it.  _ Teeth _ , over the mark. Before he could voice his confusion, they sunk in, and Gavin cried out. The pain was sharp, electrifying as it rippled through him. Nines pulled away but Gavin still shivered, clutching onto the other’s back. “I could scold you right now for so much, but I think I’d rather mention how perfectly  _ fucked _ that stupid mark is now.” Nines sounded so proud, and when he opened his eyes, red was on his lip, but his LED was so bright blue it was almost glowing white.

“Hah?” Nines chuckled, deep and sending  _ need _ straight to Gavin’s gut. He felt his phone buzzed, and actually growled. ‘ _ Who the fuck is messaging me?! _ ’

“Look at it.” Blinking, he felt stupid for a moment, and pulled his phone out, opening it. Which was, in all honesty, a mistake. A low whimper left his chest, and he raised his hand to his neck. It was from Nines- a picture of Gavin in his lap. Where the QR code  _ was _ was now four deep gashes, marring the code. There were more gashes too, Nines’ teeth leaving a very obvious mark.

“I’ll actually need the bandage now- Nines it was  _ fading _ .”

“Mmm. That’s fine. You’ll only need the bandages for a day, you might as well get some use out of them. Nines leaned in, mouthing at the other side. “Can I do it again?” A pause, Gavin tossing his phone onto the coffee table.

“How can I say no to you?” Nines grinned, and then moved, his hand coming up Gavin’s back. “Shit Nines wai-” It went straight for the sensitive spot, long fingers gripping and squeezing, pulling so Gavin’s left side would be exposed. He let out a gasp, melting and hands falling flat against their laps. He hated that the spot felt so good, and yet as Nines’ teeth grazed down his neck, he couldn’t help the noise he let out.  
  
“Vocal? I had a feeling you would be. Tell me Gavin, how long do you want this mark to last?” Gavin thought to the few others on his body, and he knew that was going to be a bridge best crossed later.

“You can fuck me up Nines- I got plenty of bandages.” That got a purr, and suddenly the other was sucking a cluster of hickies into his neck and shoulder. He was taking his time, and just when Gavin was about to grumble out a ‘hurry’, he felt the skin break. The hand on the back of his neck tightened, and Gavin cried out, the shock of both actions leaving him shaking and gasping. His breath was gone, but Nines didn’t let up. Suddenly his pants were his main enemy, and he squirmed in the hold. When Nines pulled back this time, Gavin felt himself be tugged closer. A tongue kept lapping at the trails of blood, and Gavin whimpered at each contact.

“Nines- mess- mess  _ move _ .” Thankfully the other got the idea, even if it came with a grin. The hand left his neck to join the one under his ass, and suddenly he was lifted, being carried. He wanted to lean forward, but he knew blood would get into the other’s shirt. He recognized the other had carried him into his bathroom, and he was slightly confused. But then he was sat down on the edge of the tub, and Nines dropped to his knees. When he looked down to meet the other’s eyes, he felt his need spike. The other looked like a  _ predator _ , red smeared against his lip, blue eyes dark and scanning, and grinning just to expose his teeth.

“Phck Nines, I want-”

“I know, I know. Let’s take care of this so it scars nicely. I’m  _ no where _ near done with you.” Nines definitely saw the shiver that caused, and Gavin stripped off the new jacket and his shirt in one move, proud he could be that fluid despite need making him melt. Nines didn’t waste a second, hands smoothing over his chest. He paused at every small scar, and the ones that didn’t come up in a scan where gently pressed.

“I wish I could say you’re the first one to fuck me up Nines.” He admitted this, feeling his hands grip at his sides. The other leaned in, and they kissed again. The taste of iron was  _ strong _ , and Gavin moaned into the kiss, almost leaning back until he didn’t feel something to lean onto.

“That’s alright, I’ll be the last one to do so.” Gavin smirked at the promise, then gasped as Nines dipped down to lick at his wounded shoulder.

They paused while Nines cleaned and bandaged his neck, and Gavin felt the soreness with every movement. It felt  _ good _ , but he wanted more. He wanted Nines, noticing the tent the other was sporting when he turned. “Nines, come on, I want to make you feel good too.” He got up, wrapping arms around the other. Looking into the mirror in front of them as Nines put the bandages away, he started to undo the buttons of Nines shirt. Then hands joined his, a deep chuckle accompanying them.

“Oh trust me, hearing you absolutely lose it to a bite has made me feel plenty good. But I won’t object to being spoiled.”

“Good- I’m more of a service type than princess.” He saw Nines smirk, and then he turned, shedding the shirt and leaving it there on the floor. In the back of his head, he knew they had a mess to clean up later. Right now, his eyes scanned Nines. “ _ Phck _ ,” he cursed. “Pictures didn’t do this justice. Nines- bed.  _ Now _ .”

Nines laughed, and effortlessly picked Gavin up again. “As you wish kitten.” Gavin went stock straight at the new nickname, and seen the worry coming before it was voiced. “Er, not int-”

“Yes phck yes,  _ Nines _ how are you so perfect.” Gavin leaned up, scrambling for a kiss, and he felt the smile against his lips as Nines picked up the pace. They fell into the bed, Gavin refusing to let go even as air became scarce. Nines had to push him back, Gavin panting with a grin.

“I hope you don’t mind my preferences are being in control.” He spoke as if he knew Gavin wouldn’t, and that didn’t surprise the detective one bit.

“Not at all- as long as you get something out of it I’m happy.” Nines smiled, leaning down to kiss him again and Gavin heard the  _ thud _ of pants and belt hitting the ground. Then nimble fingers tried for his, and he lifted his hips to make it easier.

“So eager and warm,” came the soft comment when they parted, and Gavin could see the soft breathing that Nines had started. He got Nines  _ breathing _ , and fuck if that didn’t make him so proud. Surging up, he surprised the other, flipping them while he could. Now sitting on the other’s lap, he couldn’t help but have his tongue dart out.

“You are just too damn much.” He said, leaning in now to start kissing and nipping at Nines. He got a deep chuckle, hand on the back of his neck and then the other on his boxers.

“Gavin- lube. Where.” He pointed to his bedside drawer, lips chasing stretching muscles, before he moved down. He got down to his abs, tracing around the faint outline of his thirium pump with gentle kisses, before reaching his goal of the other’s boxers. And then fingers were in his hair, leaving his neck, and  _ tugging _ , Gavin gasping as he was pulled up.

“Some other time. I want the first time for us to be together.” And Gavin couldn’t object to that, kissing the other briefly before he responded.

“Know what you’re doing with that?” Nines blinked, and Gavin could tell when he was about to search it up, flicking his nose. “No no- you get to watch the real thing,” he purred basically, taking the lube out of Nines hand.

“That seems like a much better idea.” Gavin laughed softly, standing up to pull his boxers off. “You don’t like body hair.” Gavin shook his head, not really wanting to get into that. He was neatly trimmed, a small, thinned happy trail and that was it. Getting back on the bed, he hovered over Nines’ knees, sitting up on his own. Spreading the lube over his hand, he didn’t waste time in reaching back, arching forward as he did so.

“ _ Gavin _ ,” came the growled voice for the show, and Gavin let his head fall back. He knew small gasps and pants were coming out of him, and that he was rushing a bit, but he also knew what he could handle. He got to the third finger before he felt another hand on him, Nines’ fingers ghosting up and down his length. “Gavin.” This was a warning, fingers stopping at the base and squeezing slightly. He still bucked into the touch with a whine. He pulled out his fingers, looking to see at some point, Nines’ had ripped his boxers off. ‘ _ Tomorrow them problem. _ ’ 

Nines was a tonight problem, Gavin blinking as he looked down at the length going in him. “Who in the  _ phck _ decided you need something so big?” Nines outright laughed, sitting up.

“On your back. And no one, I wasn’t originally built with one. However, I recently got one due to certain urges a certain  _ detective _ caused.” Gavin couldn’t hide the smirk if he tried.

“And you got something this big because?”

“One of those urges was to see you choke on it.” Gavin sputtered, not expecting him to be so blunt, and the flick of his eyes downwards didn’t go unnoticed. “But right now, I want to break you Gavin.” Nines leaned up, hand on the other’s jaw, gripping the stubble. “I want to break you, make it so you never forget this, never forget what  _ I _ can give you. Will you let me break you? Make you mine?”

“ _ Yes phck yes- _ ” His voice was a moan, Gavin feeling himself twitch with want. Shame was a bitch that daylight Gavin was a slave to, right here with Nines, he wanted to give and take as much as possible. The hand on his jaw moved to his chest and pushed him into the blanket, and Nines slicked himself up.

“So beautiful, handsome-” Nines starting murmuring, and Gavin noticed the rapid rise and fall of his chest. The glow of white that was his LED and the way his eyes glowed almost.

“Speak for your,  _ hah _ , self.” He moved, making sure the was one of the decorative pillows he never used under his hips. “Nines please-  _ please. _ ” He felt him line up, looking into blue eyes. ‘ _ How could anyone ever be terrified of someone this alive _ .’ Then Nines pushed in.

It  _ burned _ , the rush and size causing Gavin to immediately lose his breath. Heat spread through him like wildfire, and though it hurt, Gavin wanted more. Hands found purchase, one in Nines’ hair and the other in the sheets, as his body tried to move away and into Nines. A hand came to his hips, holding him still in a bruising grip, and the thought that Nines could easily break skin made his whole body thrum. “G-Gavin!” Nines stuttered, and Gavin couldn’t help the buck, taking more with a hiss. “Stay  _ still! _ ” He sounded so wrecked, and it made him whine with want. But eventually they settled, Nines minutely moving his hips while Gavin adjusted.

Gavin was cursing a mantra of Nines’ name and ‘ _ phck _ ’, ‘ _ please _ ’, and ‘ _ yes _ ’, and when his body finally relaxed, the burn dying out, he felt the almost forgotten tingle of pleasure. “Nines Nines- move move please.” A short nod, and slowly the other pulled out. That’s how it continued, slow in and out. Every so often Nines would change his angle, Gavin gasping here and there, but then one spot was brushed against and Gavin’s whole body jerked and tightened, causing Nines to hiss. “ _ There please oh fuck Nines please _ -” He heard the deep chuckle in response, and the pace picked up

Nines hit that spot  _ every time _ , and Gavin was fully aware he was crying from the pleasure. He was trying to hold back, be good for the other, but it was becoming more and more of a struggle. Then Nines reached up, lips brushing against Gavin’s. “Close- close.” His voice was so soft and Gavin threw his head back. It took the smallest tug of his hair for Gavin to  _ scream _ Nines name, tensing up and seeing white for seconds. He couldn’t feel anything but heat above him, arms around him, lips on his jaw. Then everything stopped and heat filled him, Gavin whimpering from sensitivity. They remained like that for a couple minutes til Gavin came to, pulling off of the other.

“Ni-” Gavin coughed, his voice very thoroughly destroyed. “Nines?” He nudged the other, seeing the blinking yellow LED. It took him a while to remember what that meant, and when he did, it was like a punch to the gut. ‘ _ I fucked my boyfriend into temporary reboot. _ ’ He snickered, and then winced, absolutely feeling it in his hips. He still forced himself up, going to grab one of his dirty shirts. He brought it over, cleaning Nines up and himself, before throwing the shirt back into the hamper. He kicked off the heavy comforter he had on the bed before pushing Nines to lay proper near the top. ‘ _ Phck I am so tired, what else what else. _ ’ He remembered the other needing to charge, and slipping out into the hallway closet.

Coming back, he felt proud of the limp he had while walking, though he avoided looking at Furball. He held a charging kit, setting it up beside the bed on the side where Nines was laying. Somewhere in the bed or one the floor was lube but he couldn’t care. Thinking of everything Nines would need, and getting it done, he now climbed into the bed, snuggling up to the other and pulling the blankets up. It was then he saw the spin of blue, the sharp intake of air. It moved to red, til Nines seen Gavin.

“I… Passed out.” Gavin snorted, nodding, reaching for the arm not underneath him.

“Mhm. We should’ve been a bit easier on you for your first time.” His eyes closed, even though he could feel Nines look around.

“You cleaned up and- charger?”

“Mhm. Nines, I’m sore as  _ phck _ and you’re warm. Any more questions because I,” a large yawn interrupted him, “am passing out quickly.” There was a hum, and Gavin felt the arm under him bend, fingers threading through his hair.

“Nothing that can’t wait. Get some rest kitten.”

“Mmmf. Nines?”

“Yes?”

“You’re… the best… My hero.” Gavin passed out, and missed the way Nines went blue, his LED white again. Nines pressed a kiss to his head, plugging himself in before wrapping his arms around Gavin. He sent a short text to Fowler explaining they might be a little late due to updates, and then sent a text to Connor, opening up the line finally.

  
- _ Bring me a change of clothes tomorrow please. _ -


End file.
